Something About Neville
by MX Caulfield
Summary: Who could ever love Neville Longbottom? With boys like the famous Harry Potter and the dashingly handsome Draco Malfoy in the same school, most people wouldn't give Neville the time of day. Micah Quinn however gives Neville all the time of everyday.
1. Can't Take My Eyes Off Of You

Pale skin, hazel eyes, and dark brown hair that had gotten quite long over the summer holiday; Micah Quinn couldn't help but stare, discretely of course. No matter how much time the fourth year Ravenclaw spent around his best friend, he was always taken aback by the way the Gryffindor made him feel, which is why he had stopped listening to what the boy was saying and had simply been staring longingly at him for the past few minutes.

"Micah, are you listening?" the Gryffindor asked in a concerned tone. "Is there something wrong?"

Micah laughed esoterically. "I'm fine, Neville. I was just thinking about something…interesting," the Ravenclaw explained. The two boys sat in the Viaduct Courtyard. It was Friday and classes were finished for the day, so many other students sat around discussing class, weekend plans, and of course the upcoming Yule Ball. "Sorry, I'll pay more attention. What were you saying?"

Neville Longbottom's mouth formed into a relieved smile. The smile drove Micah crazy and the Ravenclaw quickly turned his brown eyes away from Neville, fearing that his best friend would look into them and discover the feelings he had been harboring. Of course, Micah, being the logical Ravenclaw that he was, knew that Neville would never discover his secret. Neville, despite all of his amazing qualities, would remain oblivious to Micah's feelings because he couldn't possible imagine anyone liking him. That damn Draco Malfoy and his group of lackeys had seen to it that Neville's self-confidence remained at a below average level and though Micah tried to convince Neville that he was a better person than Malfoy would ever be, the shy Gryffindor never really took his words to heart. The fact that he couldn't make Neville see how amazing he was infuriated Micah. All Harry Potter had to do to give Neville a boost was say something trite and flash him that smile that drove everyone crazy. Neville always felt braver and more confident whenever those green eyes of Potter were on him. Needless to say, Micah was not Harry Potter's biggest fan.

"We were talking about the Yule Ball. I still need to figure out whom to ask," Neville reminded his friend.

Micah pinched the bridge of his nose. The exasperated Ravenclaw ran a hand through his curly black hair before looking back into the eyes of the object of his affection. Micah's light brown eyes met Neville's hazel eyes and for a moment, Micah was lost in them. He shook his head slightly and paused to make sure his words wouldn't betray his feelings. "Who did you have in mind?"

Neville looked slightly abashed. "Well I was thinking about asking Hermione Granger. She's always been nice to me, plus she's smart and pretty," Neville wouldn't meet Micah's eyes.

Micah thought that Neville's embarrassment was adorable. The love-struck boy wasn't thrilled about his beloved Neville asking someone else to the Ball, but he would always support Neville, even if it meant he had to suffer.

"Granger has been asked to the Yule Ball by Viktor Krum, multiple times," Micah said calmly. "I would go for it if I was you, but I have the feeling that you're not willing to compete against a world famous Quidditch player in a game of love."

Neville smiled again, which made Micah's heart skip a beat. "I'm not in love with Hermione. I just want to take someone to the Ball, as a friend. I think it'll be fun." Neville thought for a second before speaking again. "You said that Viktor Krum asked Hermione multiple times. So that means she turned him down, right?"

The dark skinned Ravenclaw nodded, which made his black curls bounce. "My guess is that she's waiting for the youngest Weasley brother to ask her, but I don't think that's going to happen. Weasley is about as bright as a sack of bricks and when it comes to matters of the heart, I doubt he know any better."

Neville looked at his friend reproachfully. He was use to Micah voicing his brutally honest opinions, but he still took the time to reprimand him when he insulted one of his fellow Gryffindors. "That's not very nice, Micah. Even if what you said about Hermione is true, it's not Ron's fault that he doesn't know. It's probably difficult to tell when someone has feelings for you."

Micah laughed internally at the irony of Neville's words. "Maybe for a Gryffindor. Anyway, who's next on your list of possible Yule Ball dates?" Micah asked with thinly veiled hope.

"What about Hanna Abbott?" Neville asked with a shrug of his shoulders. The movement caused his scarf to unravel slightly.

Micah felt a cold breeze blow through the courtyard and shook his head. The Ravenclaw leaned over and fixed Neville's scarf. The desire to help Neville was automatic, but when Micah noticed how close he was to the object of his affection, he stiffened. The boy quickly brushed some lint off of his friend's cardigan before sitting back and clearing his throat. "No, absolutely not," Micah said, continuing the conversation from where they had left off. "I cannot stand her. She has got to be one of the most annoying Hufflepuffs around. You cannot take her to the dance."

Neville pursed his lips. The Gryffindor might have been oblivious to Micah's love for him, but he could tell that his friend was aggravated by the current topic of their conversation, so he changed it without rebuking him for his brutal honesty. "Ginny Weasley," Neville said simply.

Micah raised his eyebrow. The Weasley girl was a Gryffindor, and Micah hated when Neville hung around the Gryffindors, though he dealt with it because they accepted him in a way that not many did. Micah knew that Ginny was in love with Potter, though like a typical Gryffindor, Potter was completely oblivious to the magnitude of her feelings. Micah thought all of this through in a matter of seconds. He knew that Neville didn't have any romantic feelings for the youngest Weasley and of course Ginny was too blinded by the lightning-scarred boy to notice how much of a catch Neville was. Yes, this could work. "Do it," Micah said evenly.

Neville looked slightly taken aback by Micah's bluntness. His friend had been able to find something wrong with all of the other girls Neville had proposed to ask to the Ball, but now he was practically pushing Neville to ask Ginny.

Micah stood up and pointed towards the direction of the castle entrance. "Go on and ask her. You're a Gryffindor; your whole thing is bravery."

Neville nodded zealously; Micah's words fueling his drive. "You're right. I'll be brave, just like Harry."

Micah winced slightly at the mention of the famous Harry Potter, but Neville didn't notice.

Neville stood up and pulled Micah into a quick embrace. "Thanks Micah. I know you hate talking about this whole Yule Ball business, but I'm really excited and I'm so glad you helped me with this whole date thing."

Micah swallowed. Neville's arms were around him. Micah's nostrils flared and took in the smell of shampoo and the lingering scent of the greenhouse that always seemed to cling to Neville. "I'd do anything for you," Micah said simply. Micah knew his words ran the risk of betraying his feelings, but he had the feeling that his excited best friend would not pick up on the double meaning behind them.

Neville released his friend from the embrace and Micah had to force himself to refrain from pulling him back in.

"I don't know what I'd do without you," Neville smiled, making Micah's heart speed up once more. Without saying another word, the Gryffindor walked off to find his future date for the Yule Ball, leaving Micah alone in more than one way.

Micah made his way through the Entrance Hall, passing by throngs of students. Nearly Headless Nick, the ghost of Gryffindor house, floated by and tipped his head in greeting to a group of Gryffindor students. Micah was use to such crowds and slipped through effortlessly. The Ravenclaw made his way over to the large marble staircase, which was also teeming with young witches and wizards, but before he could make his ascent he was stopped by the sound of his name being called.

"Hello, Micah," a dreamy voice spoke from the foot of the staircase. A girl of about thirteen years of age made here way over to Micah. Her blonde hair fell in waves down her back and over the grey blazer she wore. Underneath the blazer she wore a dark pink sweater. Her dark blue leggings and converse did not match the rest of her outfit, but the girl pulled off the unique style in a way that few others could. The red radish earrings she wore did not even seem odd to Micah anymore.

"Hi, Luna; I don't really have time to chat. I'm running late for choir rehearsal." Micah began climbing the marble staircase. When Luna fell in step beside him, the older Ravenclaw simply shrugged and continued walking. Micah remained quiet, feeling no need to waste words. He knew Luna well enough to be able to tell when she had something to say, so he simply waited for her to begin speaking.

"From the look on your face I'd guess that a group of Nargles had stolen something from you;" the blonde Ravenclaw said pleasantly. Luna walked with her hands behind her back and a mischievous look in her grey eyes. "A certain Gryffindor perhaps?"

Micah narrowed his light brown eyes at the dotty girl beside him. "Honestly Luna, don't you think Nargles have better things to do than stealing unrequited love interests?" Micah stuck his hands into the pockets of his charcoal colored pants. There were very few people Micah would have this conversation with and Luna happened to be one of them. "I'm sure that Neville has not been taken by Nargles. In fact, by this time he's probably asking Ginny Weasley to the Yule Ball," Micah said, feeling a bit disheartened.

Luna frowned slightly. "Nargles like to steal things that mean a lot to people," Luna said in answer to Micah's first question. When Luna saw that her friend still looked upset, she tugged on the sleeve of his light blue thermal shirt. "You decided on Ginny?" Luna asked, knowing that Neville would not have made a decision on his Yule Ball date without Micah's input.

Micah nodded, causing his black curls to bounce. "It seemed like the safest choice," Micah responded. "Miss Weasley is so infatuated with Potter that she would never make a move on Neville, and we both know that Neville isn't the type to make the first move." The last part of the sentence came out in a whisper.

Micah and Luna walked in silence for a few moments, before Luna decided to continue the conversation. "Have you decided what you're going to wear to the Yule Ball?" Luna asked cheerily.

Micah scoffed. "I'm not going to the Ball. I spent so much time deluding myself into think that I had a chance with," Micah stopped talking abruptly when a group of Gryffindor girls walked by, then continued once they passed "Neville, that I didn't think asking anyone and going alone would just make me seem pathetic."

"You could just ask one of your friends. That's what Neville did after all," Luna supplied helpfully. The Ravenclaw duo stopped walking as the staircase in front of them moved to another location.

Micah looked behind him to make sure that no one was in earshot of their conversation; luckily the two were alone on the staircase. "Luna, I'm not sure if you've noticed, but I sometimes come off as a bit of a jerk. I haven't got many friends besides Neville and you."

Luna's grey eyes met Micah's brown eyes in that moment. The blonde Ravenclaw blinked her eyes, completely oblivious to the realization her older house mate had just come to.

"Luna," Micah began "would you like to go to the Yule Ball with me? That is, if no one else has asked you, of course." Micah could not believe that he hadn't thought of this sooner. The time he spent with Luna rivaled the amount of time he spent with Neville; it seemed only obvious that Luna would be on his list of perspective dates.

Luna nodded slowly. "Yes, I would like to go to the Ball with you. I'm not old enough to go by myself," Luna said evenly. "Father will be so pleased to hear that I'll be attending the Ball. It will be the perfect time to observe Wrackspurts. They find it particularly easy to float in one's ears while they're dancing."

Micah nodded solemnly. "I've heard that too," the Ravenclaw seriously. "Well then, shall we meet in the Ravenclaw common room at about 7:30 on the night of the Ball?" Micah suggested.

"Yes, that sounds reasonable," Luna spoke calmly, but it was obvious that she was excited about attending the Ball. "I'm going to go find Ginny and see if Neville has asked her already," Luna said suddenly. "I've got to make sure he's got a date so that you don't change your mind about taking me," Luna said with a serious little nod, which made her radish earrings jangle.

Micah laughed. "I wouldn't do that, Luna. I asked you and I intend to show everyone at that Ball just how well two Ravenclaws can move on the dance floor." Micah wondered for a moment if Luna had honestly thought he'd ditch her if Neville came to him suddenly and asked him to the Ball. Then Micah had to wonder for a moment if her worries were warranted. The boy shook his head slightly to clear his head. "I'm late for rehearsal. I'll see you later, Luna." At that moment the staircase ahead of the two realigned with the one they were on. Micah took a few steps forward before turning to his friend and giving her a sly smile. "Make sure to wear your party best," Micah knew that would Luna's 'party best' would be something completely outlandish, and he would have it no other way.

Luna blinked her grey eyes. "Of course," she said in a tone that suggested she had already been planning to do that very thing. "Now run along. You know Professor Flitwick will start to worry if his lead tenor doesn't show up for rehearsal."

Micah slapped a hand to his forehead. "Right, I've got to go," and with that Micah turned and sprinted to the third floor music room the Hogwarts' choir met for rehearsal.

Micah quietly slipped into the music room as the choir finished up their warm up exercises. He mouthed apologies to Professor Flitwick, who stood in front of the group of singers and acted as the conductor. The charms Professor nodded understandingly and gestured for Micah to take his spot in front of the tenor section. The choir consisted of mostly Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff students, but there were a few Slytherin and Gryffindor students thrown in the mix. Every Wednesday and Friday the choir met in the third floor music room and went through their set list, though this year they had been meeting more often at the request of their lead soloist, Jessica Smith. Jessica was a tall seventh year Ravenclaw with long black hair that that reached the middle of her back and a pair of piercing blue eyes. Her skin was pale but spattered with freckles that only enhanced her beauty. She was a nice girl, though she tended to get a bit serious when it came to choir related activities. As Hogwarts was currently hosting two rival schools the choir never knew when head master Dumbledore would call on them for an impromptu performance in an attempt to impress their guests.

Micah had missed warm ups, but he knew that no excuses would be accepted from his fellow singers, especially Jessica, and that he'd have to sound as good as always during rehearsal. The fourth year quickly hummed his scales during the five minute break Professor Flitwick gave the group between warm ups and actual practice. As Micah was finishing up his warm ups, Jessica made her way over to him.

The seventh year was still in uniform. Her pleated grey skirt was a few inches over her knees and her long white socks were rolled down. The top few buttons of her white shirt were undone but her grey sweater vest kept the outfit from looking too scandalous. Jessica stood in front of Micah and looked down at him; her blue eyes locked onto Micah's. "So nice of you to join us, Quinn," Jessica began, referring to Micah by his last name as usual "what could have been so important that you showed up ten minutes late for rehearsals?"

Micah held in a sigh and a sarcastic remark. He ran a hand through his hair, but did not break contact with Jessica's piercing gaze. "I was busy with personal matters. I assure you I will not make a habit of being tardy." Micah said simply before going back to his warm ups.

Jessica sucked her teeth, but her shoulders relaxed slightly and when she spoke her tone was less harsh. "You've got a lot of talent, Quinn. Once I'm gone the choir is going to need a new lead soloist. I think that soloist should be you, but it does come down to a vote and you're not the most popular guy around."

Micah raised his eyebrow as if he hadn't been aware of this fact. He finished going over his scales one more time before pulling a bottle of water from his bag and taking a sip. He then waved his hand in a gesture to let Jessica know she could continue.

"You have to make sure that all the others know they can rely on you to lead them well," Jessica gave Micah one of her rare smiles "that's how I became the lead soloist."

Micah wondered to himself if the two were having a moment. They had spent plenty of time alone together, but he wouldn't call them friends. Micah had been recruited by the choir when Professor Flitwick came across him singing alone in his charms classroom one day back in Micah's first year. Professor Flitwick had asked the lead soloist at the time, Tim Collins, to take Micah under his wing. Tim was the lead tenor at the time and Professor Flitwick hoped that with the proper grooming, Micah could take over for him. After Tim graduated at the end of that year, his girlfriend, Jessica Smith took over as Micah's personal musical tutor. Jessica was a soprano, and though their music ranges were so different, Jessica had enough musical training to assist Micah with the extra practice Professor Flitwick often assigned him.

"Miss Smith, I do believe that you are telling me that you're placing your confidence in me," Micah gave the talented soprano a sly smile.

Jessica Smith returned the smile before she turned on her heels and walked back over to her place in front of the soprano section.

Professor Flitwick then called the choir back to order and lead them through their entire set list, which included the Hogwarts' school song and some more current songs which were popular in the wizarding community. The rehearsal went by in a blur with Jessica singing two solos and a duet with Micah.

An hour later, Micah stood alone in the music room. Practice had ended a few minutes earlier, but Micah decided to stay behind since the empty classroom was a nice reprieve from the rest of the bustling castle. He walked over to a window with a view of the lake. Micah laughed esoterically as he watched Neville with his pant legs rolled up wading in the water collecting aquatic plants. "I swear, whenever he's around my eyes just go straight to him." It was at that moment that Micah felt something in his heart. Emotion was welling up inside of him. The fourth year Ravenclaw bit his lower lip. He had to resist the urge to run out to that lake and talk to his unrequited love, because he knew that if he got anywhere near Neville at that moment he wouldn't be able to keep his feelings a secret. "Damn it, Neville." Micah turned and walked over to a supply closet that held tuning forks, metronomes, and various other musical tools. The emotional boy pulled a goblet out of the closet then walked to a table in the center of the room and placed the goblet on it. Micah pulled his wand out of his back pocket and held it up in the sunlight that streamed through the windows of the classroom. "Willow, 13 inches, and a Unicorn hair core," the boy said with a smile. Micah remembered the day he got the wand on his first trip to Diagon Alley over three years ago. Ollivander had told him that it was a good wand for casting charms, which worked fine for Micah as that had ended up becoming his best class. The wand was sleek and black with an intricate silver vine like design around the handle. Micah loved this wand as all witches and wizards loved their wands. The piece of willow wood felt as if it was an extension of Micah's body.

"Time to get to work," Micah whispered to his wand before pointing it at the goblet in front of him. "Aguamenti," Micah spoke clearly and confidently; a stream of clear water shot from his wand in response and filled the goblet. "We still need a bit more magic," Micah said before touching the water in the goblet with the tip of his wand. The black haired wizard was feeling better already as he hummed a few chords and mentally said an incantation. Micah could feel the magic flow from his body, through the wand, and into the water. Micah pulled his wand from the goblet of water and with a quick swish of his wand completed the last part of the spell he was casting. Bubbles started floating from out of the goblet and floated around Micah. Once the bubbles reached a reasonable height they floated around Micah, waiting for his next command.

"Maybe a little music will help clear my mind of a certain Gryffindor," the words came out playfully, but Micah was serious. Micah cleared his voice then he opened it and began to sing.

"_You're just too good to be true;_

_Can't take my eyes off of you._

_You'd be like heaven to touch._

_I want to hold you so much._

_At long last love has arrived and I thank God I'm alive._

_You're just too good to be true;_

_Can't take my eyes off of you."_

Slowly, the bubbles floating around Micah began to pop, and the young wizards voice came from them singing different parts of the song, which resulted in a beautiful harmony.

"_Pardon the way that I stare,_

_There's nothing else to compare._

_The sight of you leaves me weak._

_There are no words left to speak, _

_But if you feel like I feel please let me know that it's real._

_You're just too good to be true;_

_Can't take my eyes off of you."_

Micah spun on one heel and made his way over to the window with the view of the lake, snapping his fingers in time with the music. When he looked out the window and watched Neville this time, he didn't feel the same pang in his heart he had felt earlier. The music was soothing him and his enthusiastic dance moves distracted him from the pain of unrequited love, if only for a few minutes. Micah then thrust both of his hands outward as if he was pushing back two walls that were closing in on him from both sides. The lead tenor threw his head back and sang the next part of the song with vigor fueled by all the pain and longing he felt.

"_I need you baby! If it's quite alright, I love you baby,_

_You warm a lonely night._

_I love you baby._

_Trust in me when I say it's okay._

_(It's okay)_

_Oh pretty baby! Don't let me down I pray._

_Oh pretty baby, now that I've found you stay,_

_And let me love you, oh baby let me love you, oh baby."_

Micah repeated the chorus as the walked over to the wall opposite him, brushing the floating bubbles with his hands as he went. Micah ran a hand through his black curls and slumped against the wall, sliding down it as he finished the chorus and worked his way into the next verse.

"_I need you baby! If it's quite alright, I love you baby,_

_You warm a lonely night._

_I love you baby._

_Trust in me when I say it's okay._

_(It's okay)_

_Oh pretty baby! Don't let me down I pray._

_Oh pretty baby, now that I've found you stay,_

_And let me love you, oh baby let me love you, oh baby._

_I need you baby! If it's quite alright, I love you baby,_

_You warm a lonely night._

_I need you baby._

_Trust in me when I say it's okay._

_(It's okay)_

_Oh, oh pretty baby! Don't let me down I pray._

_Oh pretty baby, now that I've found you stay,_

_And let me love you, oh baby let me love you, oh baby."_

As the song drew to a close and the last bubbles in the air popped releasing the last few notes of the song, Micah thought of Neville and how he desperately wished he had the courage to sing those words to him. Though his thoughts were back on Neville, the impromptu song and dance had acted as a type of catharsis and dulled the pain that often came from thoughts of his unrequited love.

Micah's attention was drawn back to reality when he heard a slow clap start from the door. The startled Ravenclaw turned his head to the left and saw a familiar form leaning against the frame of the doorway.

The boy had a well groomed head of brown hair, which stood in stark contrast to Micah's unruly black curls. The boy was tall and lean, though the short sleeves of his yellow polo shirt revealed that he was quite defined. He looked down at Micah with honest grey eyes and smiled. "I just witnessed a private concert with the future lead soloist of the Hogwarts' choir. I'm honored." From anyone else that sentence would have been laced with sarcasm, but this boy's words were completely earnest as always. The brown haired wizard made his way over to Micah, and then extended his hand when he got close enough to help him up.

Micah's lips formed into a thin smile as he took the taller boy's hand and allowed himself to be hoisted onto his feet. "You're quite lucky. What you just witnessed is not something many get to see." Micah leaned against the wall behind him and looked up into the other boy's grey eyes. "So, how've you been, Cedric?"

"As good as anyone participating in one of the most dangerous wizarding competitions could be, I suppose," Cedric did not say the words negatively. He was proud to be one of the champions in the Tri-Wizard tournament, but as always he answered the question as honestly as possible. "How have you been?" Cedric asked Micah. It was a simple question that most people would take as a simple pleasantry, but Micah was close enough to Cedric to know that there was a hidden meaning to that question. The black haired wizard sighed. "He's going to the Yule Ball with Ginny Weasley," Micah had to force the words out of his mouth. Though he had agreed to Neville asking the youngest Weasley to the Ball, it still hurt him to think of the object of his affections going to the Ball with someone else.

Cedric nodded understandingly. The Hufflepuff patted his younger friend's shoulder sympathetically. "Are you going to the Yule Ball?" Cedric asked evenly. The older wizard's grey eyes watched Micah's face intently as he waited for an answer.

Micah smiled esoterically. "I am, though I'm only going so that I can be around Neville," Micah's eyes widened in surprise as soon as the words left his mouth. The Ravenclaw looked into Cedric's eyes. "How do you always manage to make me say what I'm thinking? I hadn't even admitted that to myself."

Cedric slid his hands into the pockets of his black jeans; his grey eyes were still on Micah. "I don't do anything special. I just listen," Cedric shrugged his shoulder. His expression remained neutral as he waited for Micah to respond.

"From my personal experience, it is pretty special to listen; not everyone knows how to do that," Micah said simply.

Cedric nodded thoughtfully; considering Micah's words. "Who are you going to the Ball with?" the Hufflepuff asked, changing the subject as suddenly as they had gotten on it.

"Luna Lovegood," Micah answered without thinking. "We're just going as friends though," Micah added as a second thought. It hadn't seemed important to make the clarification with Luna, as the both of them knew that they were only going to the Ball as friends, but Micah had the feeling that others might not come to the same conclusion.

Cedric smiled down at Micah. It was that odd smile he got when he found something amusing, but felt it inappropriate to smile so he tried, to no avail, to hide it. It was a very cute smile that most people thought made Cedric look even more attractive. Cedric pulled out his wand and pointed it at the goblet Micah had used earlier. The seventh year whispered the _Wingardium Leviosa_ charm which caused the goblet to float off of the table and back into the supply closet. "I figured as much, seeing as how you're so infatuated with Neville Longbottom." Cedric said, responding to Micah's earlier statement.

Micah laughed bitterly. "That was the understatement of the century."


	2. Songbird

A few hours after choir practice, Micah sat in the Ravenclaw common room with his Potions text book open in front of him. Most other students were slacking in their studies due to the excitement of the Triwizard tournament, but Micah refused to be distracted. The fourth year was reviewing the practical uses of Bezoars when a group of Ravenclaw students entered the common room.

The five students were all rather excited, but obviously not in a good way. "We ought to go down to the dungeons and teach those Slytherins that they can't mess with a Ravenclaw and get away with it," said a short fifth year. She was a chubby girl with messy black hair and beady eyes.

A third year boy with an unfortunate hair cut was the next to speak. "I've got a hex I've wanted to try. I can't think of a better practice dummy than a Slytherin," the read head said vehemently.

The tallest student in the group stepped forward and turned to the others. The boy was 5'7" and had a head of neatly groomed bleach blonde hair. His was thin and long limbed. He wore a grey Burberry v-neck sweater and a pair of dark blue slim fit jeans. The Ravenclaw had clear blue eyes which he hid behind a pair of silver wire Dior glasses. The sleeves of his expensive sweater were a bit too long for his arms, so he constantly had to roll them up. "Guys, I appreciate the thought, but going down to the dungeons to confront those Neanderthals wouldn't help anyone," the boy said in exasperation. "They just called me some names. I didn't want anyone to find me after our little tussle, which is why I was in Moaning Myrtle's bathroom."

"That definitely wasn't the smartest move," Micah said evenly from across the room. He was still seated in the study area, but had stopped reading due to the commotion. "Myrtle was a Ravenclaw after all, plus she was bullied during her time at Hogwarts too."

The blonde boy looked up for the first time since entering the common room. His clear blue eyes locked onto Micah's.

Micah was slightly taken aback by the intensity of the boy's gaze. He had seemed to timid up until a moment ago. Micah broke eye contact with the distraught blonde and looked at the group behind him. "I'm guessing Myrtle found you lot and informed you that our house mate needed some assistance."

The four riled up Ravenclaws nodded curtly. None of them said a word to Micah and they refused to look him in the eyes.

Micah rolled his eyes. He was use to such chilly reactions from his fellow students. He made deductions like this often and most of the time he was correct, but he soon discovered that some of his peers found this trait to be quite annoying. Micah paid his fellow Ravenclaws no mind. Micah turned his attention back to the blonde. "Well there you go," Micah said simply.

The blonde locked his eyes on to Micah's again. The taller boy bit his bottom lip as if he wanted to say something, but he remained silent.

Micah raised an eyebrow. The fourth year had made another deduction. "Would you like to study with me?" Micah asked the questions casually, but knew that it would be met with reactions of shock from the group behind the intense blonde.

The blonde's mouth opened slightly in surprise, but he nodded without hesitation. His eagerness caught his friends by surprise, but Micah had expected it.

The group behind the blonde made scandalized noises and in whispered voices asked the boy if he was sure about his decision. Micah paid them no mind as he was use to being treated as a pariah in his own house.

The blonde turned to his friends and waved them along. "Go on, I'll be fine." He said it politely enough, but Micah caught a thin trace of annoyance in the posh boy's voice.

The group murmured their disapproval, but obeyed the blonde and dispersed from the common room, leaving their friend alone with Micah.

The two boys stared at each other for a moment in silence. Brown eyes met blue eyes in a moment of relaxed intimacy that was surprising and expected at the same time. Finally, Micah gestured to the chair across from him, indicating that the blonde should take a seat.

The taller boy hastily obliged, but did not take his eyes of Micah for a second. His intense gaze was like an unwavering spotlight, but Micah didn't find it unnerving, he simply found it interesting. No one had ever looked at him like that before and he found it strangely reminiscent of how most people looked at Potter.

"You're here under false pretenses," Micah began in an even tone. "I'm already done studying so I hope you weren't seriously craving an impromptu review session." The black haired wizard spoke in his usual tone, a tone that most people took as arrogance.

The blonde's gaze did not falter and by the look on his face, he wasn't upset over Micah's lie or even insulted by his tone; if anything, he seemed amused by the whole course of events. "You usually study alone and when you're not alone you're with Luna Lovegood or Neville Longbottom," when he spoke his voice was neutral and steady as if he were reciting facts from a text book. "I knew that we wouldn't be studying when you asked me to sit with you," he said each word with a studious preciseness that one usually only heard in a classroom.

Micah allowed his lips to form into a thin smile. "Yet you accepted my invitation anyway," he said this less like a statement and more like a question. Micah was slightly intrigued by the sudden shift in the blonde's demeanor. "Why exactly did you do that…" Micah stopped when he realized he did not know the blonde's name.

"Avery," the boy supplied "Avery Oiseau." Avery didn't sound the least bit offended by Micah's unfamiliarity with him, in fact he seemed to expect it. "We're in the same year," Avery added.

Micah nodded. Now that he thought about it, he realized that he and Avery roomed in the same dorm and had since their first year. In fact, Avery's bed was directly to the left of Micah's. "Would you mind if I made an observation?"

Avery raised a perfectly manicured eyebrow. "That's very out of character for you. Since when do you ask permission before making an observation?" Avery inquired coyly.

Micah shrugged his shoulders. "Only when I care about whether or not I hurt the person's feelings," he replied.

For the first time since the conversation started, Avery looked slightly taken aback. "I don't mind if you're a bit blunt," the blonde spoke slowly. "I just want to talk with you," he said in a whispered tone, as if they words were not meant for anyone to hear.

Micah stared into Avery's eyes for a few moments. "You don't like those people you were just with," Micah said evenly.

Avery blinked in surprise. "What makes you say that?"

"Well, you didn't deny it," Micah pointed out. "Plus, you hold back around them, but that's not what you're really like."

"What do you think I'm like then?" Avery asked hurriedly.

"You're bold, but only when something interests you," Micah began. "The reason you acted so differently around the others, isn't because you're meek, it's because you were bored. You simply could not be bothered."

For a moment, Avery's expression remained neutral, then he began to laugh. The fashionable blonde covered his face with his right hand, but his laughter did not stop.

Micah watched Avery wordlessly. When the blonde finally composed himself, Micah spoke first. "So, my observation was correct."

"Yes," Avery giggled as he spoke. "Does that make me a horrible person?"

"Does what make you a horrible person?"

"The fact that I find our house mates to be incredibly dull?" Excitement filled Avery's whispered question. The blonde leaned in close; enraptured by Micah's words.

Micah leaned forward and put his lips close to Avery's ear. "I'd find it more detestable if you enjoyed the company of dull people," Micah whispered.

Avery tensed, but remained close to Micah. After a few moments, both boys sat back and looked at each other. Heat had rushed to Avery's cheeks, but he did not attempt to hide it.

Micah's face remained passive, though he blinked his eyes in confusion. He was admittedly perplexed, which did not happen often.

Suddenly a jolt of emotion shot through Micah, not from within himself, but from Avery. A feeling or emotion that felt familiar, but he couldn't put his finger on. It was similar to the feeling a child got when they saw a toy they wanted, but could not have. _"__That__ was __odd.__What ever__ that__ emotion __was, __I__'__ve__ definitely __felt __it __before.__ It __reminded__ me__ of__—"_

Micah's thoughts were cut short by Avery. "It's late. I suppose everyone is making their way down to the Great Hall for supper." Avery's lips formed into cheerful smile, one that looked foreign on the usually indifferent boy's face. Avery stood up and gestured towards the door of the Common Room. "We should go before the Beauxbaton girls take up the entire Ravenclaw table."

Micah nodded and stood up to follow Avery. As they made their way to the door, a thought came to Micah's mind. "Avery, what happened with you and the Slytherins earlier?" the black haired wizard asked, deducting that things had not gone the way their house mates from earlier assumed they had.

Avery stopped walking and turned towards Micah. The two Ravenclaws stood only a few inches apart. The tall blonde met Micah's eyes. "I called them crass, because of the way they objectified a group of passing Beauxbaton girls," Micah began with not a trace of shame. "So one of them called me a fag, which lead to his cronies trying to hit me a few jinxes," Avery finished.

Micah's eyes widened slightly. Micah rarely heard derogatory comments towards gays at Hogwarts. In the Wizarding World, one was more likely to be harassed for being muggle born than for their sexual orientation.

Avery chuckled at his companion's surprise "None of them hit though. I'm pretty skilled with protective charms." A look of consternation formed on Avery's face. "I went to the restroom to wash my face off after the incident, and I guess Myrtle assumed I was crying, which is probably why she went to find our…well meaning house mates."

Micah raised an eyebrow. "So you let them believe that you were some damsel in distress," Micah inquired. "Why?"

Avery's lips formed into a sly smile. "Everyone already saw me as that. I saw no reason to convince them otherwise." Avery looked around the room before continuing. "Their opinions mean little to me," the blonde admitted.

"Yet you told me the truth," Micah offered. He looked up into Avery's eyes and tried hard to get another glimpse at what he was feeling. He wasn't sure how it had happened earlier, and it had never happened before, but Micah was sure he could do it again. After a few seconds of trying with no success, he gave up and turned his attention back to the conversation.

Avery hadn't noticed Micah's odd behavior. "Your opinion does mean something to me," Avery said simply. Without saying another word, the blonde turned to leave the Common Room.

"Who was the one who called you out of your name," Micah asked suddenly. He wasn't sure where the question had come from, but he somehow knew the answer before the words left Avery's mouth.

Avery turned towards Micah and smiled sardonically. "Draco Malfoy. Come on, we'll be late for dinner."

Anger towards Malfoy filled Micah. It was bad enough that the spoiled blonde went out of his way to humiliate Neville, but this incident hit closer to home. Micah did not trust himself to speak, so he simply nodded in response to Avery. The two Ravenclaws left the Common Room and made their way to the Great Hall. As they walked, there was only one thought on Micah's mind: _"__I __am __going __to __duel__ that__ arrogant __bastard__ and__ put__ him__ in __his__ place,__ for __Neville __and __Avery.__"_

Upon arrival at the Great Hall, Micah introduced Luna and Avery. Avery said it was a pleasure to meet Luna. Luna said that Avery looked as if a swarm of Wrackspurts had just been removed from his head. The two hit it off instantly.

During dinner, Micah sat with Luna to his right and Avery to his left. The two blondes tried to draw Micah out of his silence, but to no avail. Micah's eyes had been fixed on Draco Malfoy from the moment he entered the hall.

The blonde Slytherin sat between Vincent Crabbe and Gregory Goyle. He was eating an apple and listening to some trite story from Pansy Parkinson. Draco looked up and noticed Micah's intense glare, the blonde put down the green apple in his hands and gave Micah a scornful look. When Micah's gaze did not falter, Draco mouthed the words "mudblood."

Micah's gaze remained steadfast. Brown eyes met grey as the two wizards stared each other down. No one in the Great Hall seemed to notice the silent duel between the two. Micah feigned composure as to not alert Luna or Avery. Malfoy did no such thing, as Crabbe and Goyle weren't perceptive enough to pick up on the subtle exchange.

Malfoy turned his eyes towards Avery. His lips formed into a cunning smile. "Fag," Malfoy mouthed venomously.

Micah's gaze hardened. His hand tightened around the wand in his pocket.

Luna noticed Micah drawing his wand. "Nargles," she met Micah's eyes. "Nargles, Micah," Luna repeated earnestly.

Micah met Luna's eyes. He looked over his shoulder to the table where the Gryffindors sat. His gaze instantly fell on Neville, laughing with Potter and his friends. Micah's lips formed into an involuntary smile. His grip on his wand loosened as the moment of rage passed. Micah turned to Luna and gave her a grateful nod.

The blonde girl smiled wordlessly before turning her attention back to her pudding.

Micah gave Malfoy an esoteric look. He had been focusing on Malfoy all throughout dinner and it was only now that he realized how hungry he was. He turned his attention away from the Slytherin table and began eating.

Avery watched the entire exchange wordlessly. He had been keyed into the disturbance at the same time Luna had, but he could not figure out why the word nargles had been able to draw his attention from Malfoy. Then, Avery saw the look Micah gave Neville and the change in his demeanor afterwards and everything began to make sense. Avery pushed his plate away; he had lost his appetite. For the remainder of dinner, he watched Micah from the corner of his eye.

Towards the end of dinner, Dumbledore stood from his seat. The sorcerer's long white beard was tied with a long blue ribbon which matches his elegant robes. Silence fell over the Great Hall. "I hope that all of you are enjoying the feast," the aged wizard began in a soft yet powerful voice. "Tonight we have a special treat in the form of post-meal entertainment."

Jessica Smith came over to Micah's side of the table and pushed herself in between Micah and Avery.

"Miss Smith, this is unprecedented," Micah whispered without taking his eyes off of Dumbledore. "What's the occasion?"

"Quit it with the sass, Quinn," the normally posh seventh year old looked flustered. Her appearance was neat as usual, but her demeanor was anxious. "Pay attention."

Micah shrugged and turned his attention back to Dumbledore's speech.

The headmaster motioned to his left where a line of students in brown uniforms stood attentively. Upon further inspection it was revealed that all the students were male. "Without further ado, I present to you, the Durmstrang Institute Skylarks."

The brown uniformed boys marched to the center of the Great Hall and stood in a v-formation reminiscent of migrating birds. Cheers erupted from the students in the hall. The loudest cheers came from the Slytherin table, where the remainder of the Durmstrang students was seated.

Micah raised an eyebrow and turned towards Jessica. "What is this?"

"Durmstrang's choir, their all male acapella choir," Jessica looked pale. She was clearly worried about something, but Micah could not figure out what.

"Is there something I'm missing?" Micah inquired. He wanted to know what could make a girl as confident as Jessica so anxious.

Jessica opened her mouth to reply, but was cut off when the boy at the head of the Durmstrang triangle began speaking.

The term "boy" being used loosely as he had to be at least seventeen. He was tall and broad shouldered. His brown hair was buzzed so low that it was nearly indiscernible next to his tan skin. "Hello, I am Arnost Balakov," he began in a deep voice that echoed throughout the Great Hall.

Micah tuned out the next few words of Arnost's speech. His attention was drawn to a boy standing to the right of the Durmstrang lead soloist.

A boy about half an inch shorter than Arnost stood in the same attentive stance as the rest of the choir, but instead of staring dutifully ahead like the rest, his dark brown eyes were fixed solely on Micah.

Micah returned the look, though less intensely. Micah had never spoken to this boy and as far as he knew, he had never even seen him before.

His hair was considerably longer than the other Durmstrang boys, though it was still short in comparison to the neck length hair many Hogwarts boys were sporting that year. His sandy brown hair was wavy on the top and trimmed neatly at the sides. His nose was flat and large, but it went well with his face.

Micah's observation was cut short when the boy broke eye contact.

Arnost was still talking. "We are the Skylarks, and we will be performing for you this evening," Without saying another, the Durmstrang lead soloist.

The boys behind Arnost began humming in harmony, creating a rich sound that filled the Great Hall. The Skylarks swayed from one foot to the other, snapping with the beat. Arnost stepped forward and began singing in a robust bass.

"_Isn't she lovely? Isn't she wonderful?_

_Isn't she precious? Less than one minute old._

_I never thought through love we'd be,_

_Making one as lovely as she,_

_But isn't she lovely made from love."_

"_This __is__ a__ bit__ shocking.__I__ never__ expected __them __to __sing __a__ song __by__ a__ muggle,__"_ Micah thought to himself. Professor Flitwick allowed the Hogwarts choir to sing muggle songs during rehearsal, since they were popular with muggle borns, half-bloods, and pure bloods alike, but Micah knew that Durmstrang did not accept muggle born students into their institution, and so their performance of a song by Stevie Wonder was odd.

All the students in the Great Hall were greatly enjoying the performance. The Durmstrang students not performing nodded in approval, the Slytherins cat-called, while the rest of the student body clapped to the beat. The better the Skylarks performed, the more worried Jessica got.

"_Isn't she pretty?"_

Arnost turned to the boy to his right, the one who had been watching Micah, and sang this line to him. The boy grinned and nodded in agreement as he hummed in a rich baritone. Arnost patted the shorter boy on the back, before side-stepping around him and making his way over to the Beauxbaton girls sitting at the Ravenclaw table.

"_Truly the angel's best._

_Boy, I'm so happy. We have been heaven blessed._

_I can't believe what God has done._

_Through us he's given life to one, _

_But isn't she lovely made from love."_

Arnost winked at the girls, who giggled in response. The Durmstrang soloist walked backwards until he was in front of the rest of the choir again. The entire choir joined in at this part, singing background as the soloist harmonized with the boy to his right.

"_Isn't she lovely? Life and love are the same._

_Life is Aisha, the meaning of her name._

_Londie, it could have not been done_

_Without you who conceived the one_

_That's so very lovely made from love."_

By the last line of the song, the Skylarks were back in their starting positions and standing attentively. The Great Hall erupted in applaud and cheers. The Skylarks stood for a few seconds, basking in the post-performance glory, before turning and walking back to the Slytherin table.

Micah, who had been clapping along with the rest of the Great Hall, stopped when the boy from earlier flashed him a quick smile as he passed by. Micah felt a surge of emotion flow from the boy. It felt sticky and smelt like a mix of sweat and cinnamon. _"__What __is__ up __with __him?__ Better __yet,__ what __is __up__ with__ me?__ How __is __it__ that__ I__ can __see, __feel,__ and__ smell__ emotions?__" _Micah didn't have too much time to ponder his current situation, as Jessica was now hurriedly whispering in his ear.

"Meet me in the Entrance Hall after dinner, Quinn," the head soloist spoke urgently. "We are in over our heads in a boiling cauldron," Jessica got up and left the Great Hall, shaking her head the entire time.

After dinner, Micah lingered in the Entrance Hall. Most of the other students had already gone back to their dorms. "Miss Smith, if you're around, I would appreciate it if we could get this secret meeting underway," Micah ran a hand through his black curls. "It is way past my bed time," he added sarcastically.

"Keep your voice down, Quinn," Jessica stepped out from the shadows and made her way over to Micah. "As my future replacement, I feel like you should know about this."

"Know about what?" Micah inquired. He leaned against the wall of the Entrance Hall and folded his arms over his chest. "Why were you so freaked out during the Skylarks' performance?"

Jessica sighed. She reached into her shirt and pulled a silver pocket watch from her cleavage. "This is why I freaked out," she dangled the pocket watch by the chain in front of Micah.

The watch was newly polished and gleamed in the candle light. The Hogwarts crest adorned the front. "You're going to have to elaborate," Micah sounded exasperated.

"This pocket watch is enchanted," Jessica began. "It's like a miniature House hour glass,"

she explained. The lead soloist opened the watch and showed it to Micah. There were no numbers and only one hand. It was pointing to an image of a new moon on the top right of the face. On the opposite side of the watch face was an image of a full moon. "The lead soloist of the three school choirs all got them earlier today."

"You, Arnost, and the Beauxbatons soloist," Micah offered as he stifled a yawn.

"Exactly," Jessica sighed and closed the pocket watch. "Apparently, there's a tradition among the choirs of the three schools that compete in the Triwizard tournament," Jessica began. "It starts halfway through the year and it ends the last day of term."

"Only during years when there's a Triwizard tournament though," Micah guessed. Micah considered this for a moment. "So, what are the rules of this contest?"

Jessica frowned. "The watches use magic to detect emotion," Jessica explained. "Each watch has been magically linked to the choir it belongs to. When someone feels a positive emotion as a result of a performance from one of the choirs, the watch will detect it."

"So the arrow will move along the face of the watch and once it gets to the full moon, that choir is declared the winner," Micah deducted.

"You're a sharp one, Quinn," Jessica conceded. The soloist smiled for the first time since dinner. "So you know what we have to do. Perform any chance you get. You're one of the best. It doesn't matter if you're performing for the entire school or one person, just get people to feel," Jessica sounded adamant. "As for me, I'll be sure to rally the rest of the choir to try their best. I can't tell them about the contest, since it's supposed to be a secret. I only told you, because I know you can keep a secret and its way too stressful being the only one to know about this." Jessica placed her hands on Micah's shoulders. "I'm counting on you, Quinn."

Micah managed to smirk through his haze of exhaustion. "I'll make sure your last year as lead soloist is a successful one, oh captain my captain."

Quinn smiled in relief. "Thank you," Quinn dropped her arms. "I hate to say this, but you're the only one I can really depend on." The seventh year gave Micah one last smile before turning and walking off towards the Ravenclaw common room.

Micah pinched the bridge of his nose between his thumb and pointer finger. "It's after midnight. I really should get some sleep," Micah made his way over to the staircase of the Entrance Hall, but stopped when someone stepped out of the darkness, blocking his way.

Micah quickly drew his wand, expecting a Slytherin assault. "Lumos," Micah whispered. Light erupted from the tip of his wand, illuminating the Entrance Hall more than the dim candles could.

The light revealed a tan boy in a brown Durmstrang uniform. Micah recognized him instantly as a member of the Skylarks and the same boy who had paid so much attention to him at dinner.

"How long have you been here," Micah asked. His first thought was that the boy had heard the conversation between Jessica and himself and that he would inform the other members of the Skylarks.

The boy's cheeks pushed back as he held in a smile. "Long enough to hear that you now know about the Tri choral competition," he replied.

Micah's gaze hardened and the grip on his wand tightened.

The Durmstrang student raised his hands in a defensive position. "Don't worry, I already knew about it," he said quickly.

Micah examined the boy for any trace of deceit, but found none. "Fine," Micah conceded. "So what are you doing stalking around the Entrance Hall?"

"I was waiting for you," he answered. The boy was still trying to hold back a smile, which made his cheeks rounder and pulled his lips tight. "I wanted to meet you."

Micah was taken aback by the audacity of the situation. "Why," Micah was flustered by the boy's boldness. "How do you even know about me?"

The boy from Durmstrang looked down at Micah. His posture was excellent as most of the other Durmstrang students were. "I saw you perform on the first day of term," he admitted. "You and the rest of the Hogwarts Frog Choir led everyone in your school song."

Micah remembered the day. Professor Dumbledore had wanted to show off for the other schools and so the Frog Choir led the school in singing their song. "What about that made you want to meet me though," Micah was still perplexed by the sudden encounter.

The boy could hold back his excitement no longer. His lips parted into a crooked smile, revealing a brilliant set of white teeth. "The way you sang, it mesmerized me."

For one of the first times in his life, Micah was left speechless. The Ravenclaw opened his mouth to speak, but he could not find the proper words to express how startling this conversation was to him.

The boy laughed deeply and ran a hand over his short brown hair. "That was pretty forward of me," he admitted unabashed. "What I meant to say is that I would have never forgiven myself if I had gone entire term without speaking to you at least once and your singing…the way you performed, made me realize that." The tips of the boys pointed ears were red, not from embarrassment, but from the excitement of the situation.

For the next few seconds, Micah struggled to find words, but when he couldn't find any for the topic at hand, he moved on to another one. "How did you find out about the Tri choral competition?" He asked, remembering the name the boy had used for it earlier.

The boy's expression became esoteric. "My lead soloist told me," he explained. "I'm supposed to take his position once he graduates at the end of term, so he trusted me with the information."

Micah nodded. _"__So __it__'__s __the __same__ situation__ as__ the __one __between__ Jessica __and__ me_,"The Ravenclaw thought to himself. The exhausted fourth year unconsciously rubbed his eyes.

The Dursmtrang boy noticed this and laughed. "It's late," he said needlessly. "I should let you get some sleep. I apologize for keeping you up this late." He turned and walked in the direction of the large wooden doors that would lead out to the castle grounds. Micah remembered that the Durmstrang students were staying on their ship out on the Black Lake. The boy stopped suddenly and turned around. He hurriedly walked over to Micah and stood directly in front of him. "I've been thinking about this moment for months and now that I finally got the courage to speak to you, I almost forgot to introduce myself," he smiled broadly. He towered Micah by over nine inches, putting him at over six feet tall. "My name is Aleksander Balakov, but those who are close to me call me Alek," the excited boy thrusted out his hand for Micah to shake. "I wouldn't mind it if you called me Alek."

The bewildered Ravenclaw obliged, taking the older boy's rough hand into his. Realization suddenly struck Micah. "Balakov…are you related to Arnost Balakov?" Micah asked as he remembered the Durmstrang lead soloist's introduction.

Aleksander looked down at his hand, which Micah was still holding. Micah followed his gaze and quickly pulled his hand away when he realized what the Durmstrang boy had been looking at.

Aleksander grinned down at Micah. "Arnost is my older brother," he said in response to Micah's question. "I would love to stay here with you all night," Alek trailed off, then quickly started talking again when a look of shock flashed across Micah's face. "But you look like you're about to fall asleep while standing," he finished. "Goodnight," Alek said, though he was clearly holding back more.

The Durmstrang choir member turned and walked over to the large wooden doors. "I hope we can speak again very soon," Alek called over his shoulder as he pushed open the doors and walked out onto the castle grounds.

Once the doors closed behind Aleksander, Micah stood standing for a few moments watching the spot he had just departed from. "I've never met anyone like him before," he said out loud to himself. "That was…overwhelming." Though Micah had not enjoyed the feeling of being engulfed by the older boy's personality, he was intrigued by Aleksander and looked forward to a meeting between the too that wasn't past his own bed time.


	3. Wonderful Christmas Time

"How old is he again?" Cedric Diggory inquired, continuing a conversation that had started with Micah retelling his rendezvous with Aleksander the night before. Cedric's attention was only half focused on Micah as he was currently waltzing around the choir room with Luna Lovegood in his arms.

Micah sat Indian position on a desk pushed to the side of the classroom. "Sixteen," the Ravenclaw answered absentmindedly as he looked over some sheet music.

"And he just came out and admitted to fancying you?" Cedric asked as he focused on the difficult task of not stepping on Luna's feet.

Micah frowned slightly. "I never said that," Micah replied. "He just said that he had been meaning to speak to me."

"And that your singing 'mesmerized' him," Cedric countered. "That sounds pretty straight forward to me." Cedric lead the waltz in front of Micah.

"He sounds interesting," Luna said dreamily. "Cedric, you must stop looking at your feet while you dance," Luna reprimanded lightly.

"Right, sorry," Cedric looked up and flashed Luna a dazzling smile. "Thanks for teaching me how to dance, by the way. Cho is going to have me on the dance floor forever the night of the ball."

Luna nodded in response as the dancing partners completed one final turn about the room. "And stop," Luna and Cedric came to a stop in the center of the empty classroom. "You were a great student, Cedric." Luna removed her hands from Cedric's shoulder before moving over to a nearby desk and taking a seat. "Are you going to see him again, Micah?"

Micah looked up from his sheet music and met Luna's eyes. "I suppose. We still have the entire second half of term together," he said tactfully.

Cedric leaned against the wall next to Micah. "Micah, we both know what Luna really meant is, do you want to see him again?" The Hufflepuff crossed his well defined arms over his chest and looked over at Micah.

Micah met Cedric's eyes, and then turned to Luna, and finally he turned to Avery who sat at the opposite side of the room. Avery sat with his eyes in a text book, and was trying hard to pretend as if he wasn't paying attention to the conversation.

Micah sighed and shrugged his shoulders. Leaning back, he ran a hand through his black curls and looked up at the ceiling. "Yes, I want to see him again."

Luna looked overjoyed, Cedric's brow furrowed in consternation, and Avery's face remained impassive.

"He's funny, he's a great singer, plus he's kind of cute," Micah rushed the last part of the sentence. Micah looked at each of his friends one by one and his eyes glinted with excitement. "Is it weird that I'm so excited about the possibility of a guy liking me?"

Avery looked up from his text book and spoke for the first time since they had entered the choir room that morning. His blue eyes met Micah's brown eyes. "No," Avery said sincerely. "It's amazing when you think someone likes you," Avery smile dejectedly before continuing "even if it's only for a little while."

Luna looked at Avery with a sudden expression of understanding. She smiled sadly as she looked from Avery to Micah, then back to Avery.

Cedric shrugged. "I guess that answers Luna's question," He walked over to the door of the classroom. "We should get going. It's almost time to leave for Hogsmeade."

Luna clapped her hands excitedly. "Cedric is right," she walked over to Avery and took him by the hand. "Come on, let's head outside."

Avery allowed Luna to pull him out of the classroom. Micah stood and followed his friends out of the classroom and downstairs towards the Entrance Hall. Once they got to the Entrance Hall, Micah took the lead and walked out towards the Viaduct Courtyard.

"Anyway, it seems kind of pointless to be discussing this," Micah said as he lead his group of friends out into the Viaduct Courtyard. "We don't even know if he fancies me or not."

As the group of teens stepped out into the light of the chilly December afternoon, they noticed that a large group was gathered in the courtyard and that most of them were from Durmstrang Institute.

"Who fancies who?" Neville stepped out from one of the pillars in the courtyard and stood directly behind Micah. He wore a pair of blue jeans and a brown sweater adorned with a green vine design that went around the torso.

Micah opened his mouth to change the subject, but before he could say anything his eyes found Aleksander.

The Durmstrang sixth year looked up as soon as Micah's eyes landed on him. He was wearing a pair of tan slacks and a red sleeveless turtle neck sweater. Micah and Alek's eyes met and though Micah looked a bit apprehensive, Alek smiled broadly. Alek stood and gestured to a few of the guys around him.

"Not again," a frazzled looking Jessica leaned against a pillar near Micah and his friends. "Can they go a day without singing?"

Micah looked over at Jessica and gave her a reassuring smile. When Micah turned his attention back to Alek, he stood in the center of the courtyard in front of a group of other Durmstrang students.

Alek raised his eyebrows at Micah and flashed him a quick smile. "My name is Alek Balakov and I'm the co-leader of the Durmstrang Institute Skylarks," Alek's voice echoed throughout the now silent courtyard. "I'd like to dedicate this performance to someone I had the pleasure of meeting last night…someone I hope to spend more time with in the near future."

Cedric leaned over Micah's shoulder. "Yeah mate, he fancies you," he whispered.

The guys behind Alek started humming and sidestepping in harmony. Alek stepped forward and began singing, hesitantly as if testing out each note.

"_Yeeeeah, oooooh, oooooh."_

When he finished singing the first few lines, he nodded as if decided that was the right note. Alek then briskly stepped forward, separating him from the rest of the group.

"_Look at him!"_

Alek winked and pointed at Micah, before turning and walking back to the other Skylarks.

The start of Alek's performance was met with mixed reactions. Luna looked overjoyed by the sudden turn of events. Cedric looked slightly incredulous and stood behind Micah protectively. From his spot beside Cedric, Neville nodded his head along to the beat, unaware to Alek's flirtation. Avery crossed his arms over his chest and was trying his best to look at anyone but Alek. Micah, was slightly taken aback, but couldn't stop his lips from forming into a small smile. The rest of the students in the courtyard seemed to be oblivious to who Alex's gesture was directed at.

When he got back to the group, Alek spun on one heel and faced Micah's direction once more. The Durmstrang sixth year smiled and began singing in a rich baritone.

"_He's a bad mamma jamma,  
>just as fine as he can be.<br>He's a bad mamma jamma,  
>just as fine as he can be"<em>

Alek sang lead while the other Skylarks sang the chorus in the background. Alek's charm and charisma kept all eyes on him as he moved about the courtyard.

"_His body measurements are perfect in every dimension.  
>He's got a figure that's sure to get attention.<br>He's poetry in motion, a beautiful sight to see.  
>I get so excited viewing his anatomy."<em>

Alek weaved between the pillars that adorned the courtyard and ended up behind Micah. The Durmstrang sixth year put his arms around Cedric and Neville, raised his eyebrows at the latter, and then looked Micah up and down.

Micah turned around just in time to see Alek checking out his ass. The Ravenclaw fourth year looked at Alek reproachfully, but his smile betrayed his true feelings.

Encouraged by Micah's smile, Alek removed his arms from the shoulders' of the boys next to him. He sidestepped his way around Micah's group and made his way back over to the other Skylarks.

"_He's built_

_He's built, he's stacked _

_Oh, he's got  
>Got all the curves that men like."<em>

Alek flexed one of his large biceps and nodded in appreciation. The soloist sang the first lyrics, while the other Skylarks echoed him.

"_He's got all the curves that men like  
>He's built<em>

_He's built, he's stacked _

_Oh, he's got  
>Got all the curves that men like <em>

_Got all the curves that men like, look at him."_

Alek pointed to Micah once more before leading the rest of the Skylarks in a shoulder lean and snap.

"_Looks like he's poured into the gold, he bad.  
>The essence of beauty, ooh, such lovely hair.<br>He's foxy, classy, oh, sexy, sassy.  
>He's heavenly, a treat for the eye to see."<em>

Micah bit his bottom lip and unconsciously ran a hand through his black curls. His eyes were glued to Alek, much to the chagrin of Avery.

While the background Skylarks sang through another round of "he's a bad mamma jamma", Alek stepped forward. The baritone tilted his head to the side, pushed his arms outward, and began to belt a stream of "oh's".

"_Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh"_

The Skylarks finished and bowed. Applause erupted throughout the courtyard. The proud Durmstrang singers broke formation and gathered together, patting each other on the back and basking in the applause.

Alek turned and flashed Micah a quick smile, before turning back to his choir mates.

"That was great," Neville continued to clap. "Those guys can really sing."

Cedric's brow was furrowed as he watched Micah. Luna smiled happily as she clapped along with Neville. Avery was contemplating leaving the courtyard to sulk in his room. Micah was still recovering from the shock of being serenaded in front of most of the school.

Cedric patted Micah on the shoulder. "I've got to get going, mate. I'm meeting Cho in Hogsmeade."

Micah shrugged. "No problem. Neville and I are heading off to Hogsmeade soon anyway." Micah said confidently since he and Neville always hung out during Hogsmeade trips.

Neville bit his bottom lip. "About that, Micah," Neville began. "I promised Ginny and some of the other Gryffindors that I would hang out with them today. Just us Gryffindors."

Luna and Cedric tactfully turned their attention away from the conversation. Avery however, paid even closer attention after Neville delivered the bad news.

Micah plastered a smile on his face. "No problem at all," he said a bit too cheerfully. "Have a good time, yeah?"

Neville nodded. "Thanks for understanding." He smiled and waved to his friends before turning and walking off towards Hogsmeade. After a few steps he turned and gave Micah an apologetic smile.

Once Neville was completely out of view, the smile on Micah's face faded away. "Well, I guess I'll go work on some homework." Micah left his friends and made his way over to the castle.

Luna, Cedric, and Avery watched Micah leave, none of them knowing what to say. Avery began to follow after Micah, but stopped when he saw a familiar looking Durmstrang student step in front of Micah.

"Hello, Micah." Aleksander smiled broadly. "Did you enjoy my performance?"

Micah's lips unconsciously formed into a thin smile. "Hi, Aleksander."

Alek pretended to pout. "Micah, please call me Alek. All of my friends do."

Micah's smiled coyly. "Oh, are we friends now?" The Ravenclaw put his hands into the pockets of his navy blue Capri pants and shrugged.

Alek met Micah's eyes. "I hope so, otherwise my plans on us becoming more than friends might take more time than I thought." His tone was playful, but with an edge of complete seriousness.

Micah, taken aback by Alek's bluntness, gave up the act and relented. "I enjoyed your performance," Micah paused, not wanting to give in too easily. "Alek," he said it quickly, almost in a whisper, but Alek heard him.

"I'm glad you enjoyed it," Alek continued to smile. "It was for you." Alek blushed, but his eyes never left Micah.

Micah turned his eyes from Alek's. "Oh really? I didn't notice." Micah nervously adjusted his blue plaid bowtie.

Alek smirked. "I think you did," his whispered deeply. The sixth year's eyes smoldered as he looked at Micah.

Micah, desperate to take control of the conversation, met Alek's gaze head on. "Yeah, I noticed," Micah smiled. "It was kind of cute," he admitted.

Alek blinked. "Really?" His usual confidence was failing him. "Alek rubbed the back of his head with his right hand. The gesture showed off his defined muscles and Micah couldn't help looking.

"Aren't you cold wearing that?" Micah asked suddenly.

Alek looked down at his sleeveless turtleneck sweater. "No, it's a lot warmer here than it is at Durmstrang this time of year." He explained.

Alek took the time to examine Micah's outfit. Navy blue pants that came down to his ankles, a pair of classic black converse, a charcoal colored button up shirt with a sweater vest that matched his pants, and a plaid bowtie which completed the outfit. "You look amazing," Alek said admiringly.

Micah ran a hand through his hair. "Thanks," he said nervously. "You look really good too." Micah was surprised with his own candor, but he had spoken the truth. The Durmstrang sixth year wore a pair of tan slacks. The red of his sleeveless sweater complimented his tan skin excellently and the reddish-brown color of his boots played off the color scheme of the rest of his outfit perfectly.

Alek silently stared at Micah for a few moments. "Would you like to accompany me to Hogsmeade?" His voice sounded vulnerable and sincere.

Micah met Alek's eyes and for once wasn't overcome by the intensity of his gaze. Alek expression was just like any other nervous teenager's. "Like, a date?" Micah inquired.

Alek's full lips formed into a nervous smile. "Yes, like a date," he said in response.

Micah closed his eyes and for the first time, his powers activated on his command. Micah could feel the emotion coming from Alek. His nervousness was sweet and salty, yet he was excited and that smelled like fresh baked goods. Micah could also feel that each second felt like an eternity to Alek, who was still waiting for an answer. Micah opened his eyes and smiled brightly at Alek. "Yes, Alek, I would love to accompany you to Hogsmeade."

Alek exhaled deeply and without warning, took Micah's right hand in his. "Thank you very much, Micah Quinn." Alex squeezed gently before releasing his hold on Micah's hand.

Luna, Cedric, and Avery watched Micah and Alek's exchange curiously from a few feet away.

"What do you think they're talking about?" Cedric asked aloud.

"I'm not sure, but Micah looks adorably flustered," Luna answered cheerfully. "Goodness, he just grabbed Micah's hand!"

"He sure moves fast," Cedric sounded like a protective brother. His fists clenched in the pockets of his black jeans, but they relaxed slightly when he saw Alek releasing Micah's hand.

Avery looked pained, but he remained silent. The tall blonde pulled his grey jacket around himself tighter, as if to protect himself from a sudden breeze.

Luna smiled understandingly at Avery. "Come on. I'll buy you some hot chocolate at the Three Broomsticks." Luna grabbed Avery by his arm and pulled him away.

Cedric took one last look at Micah and Alek before hesitantly following Luna and Avery to Hogsmeade.

The Three Broomsticks was extremely busy. The Gryffindors had pushed three tables together and occupied the center of the bar, while other groups of students sat at tables and booths around them. Cedric sat with Cho at a table next to the door, while Luna and Avery sat at a booth near the back. Micah and Alek sat at a booth near Luna and Avery, two glasses of butterbeer sat on the table in front of them.

"You're really that bad a quidditch?" Alek asked in disbelief as the two carried on a conversation from earlier.

Micah sat back in his chair and shrugged. "The day I tried out for the Ravenclaw quidditch team was one of the most embarrassing days of my life," Micah cringed at the memory of that day. "I couldn't catch the snitch and I ended up falling off my broom while chasing it." Micah took a sip of butterbeer.

"Don't feel too bad," Alek smiled. "I can't even ride a broom."

"Really?" Micah raised an eyebrow. "I wouldn't be able to tell from looking at you." Micah took a moment to admire Alek's muscles.

Alek shook his head. "I get motion sickness the second the broom lifts off the ground," Alek admitted. "Luckily, quidditch isn't that big of a deal at Durmstrang."

"Really? I feel like quidditch is all I ever hear about at Hogwarts," Unconsciously, Micah leaned in closer to Alek.

Alek nodded from his spot across from Micah. "We have intramural quidditch teams set up by whoever wants to play, but dueling is the most popular activity at Durmstrang." Alek smiled. "Anyone who is anyone is a member of the dueling league."

"So I'm guessing you're a member of the dueling league?" Micah asked.

"You guessed right," Alek replied before taking a sip of butterbeer. "I'm pretty good, but not as good as my brother. Arnost is probably the second best duelist at Dursmstrang, after Viktor Krum."

Micah tried to suppress a laugh, but failed.

Alek blinked. "Did I say something funny?"

Micah shook his head. "No, this is all very interesting; it's just that you've got a bit of butterbeer on your top lip." Micah picked up a napkin. "Here, let me get it." He leaned over the table and used the napkin to wipe the foam off of Alek's lips.

Alek smiled. "Thank you."

"No problem," Micah replied. He noticed how close he was to Alek, but he didn't move away. His heart was racing and he could feel the blood rushing to his cheeks, but he couldn't bring himself to move away.

"Would you like to be my date to the Yule Ball?" Alek asked suddenly. He sounded nervous, but not as nervous as he did when he asked Micah out a few hours ago.

Micah smiled. "That would be great." Micah's smile faded as quickly as it had formed. He sat back and bit his bottom lip.

"Is something wrong?" Alek sounded concerned. He reached over the table and took Micah's hand.

Micah smiled apologetically. "I already have a date for the Yule Ball."

Alek's brow furrowed.

Micah squeezed Alek's hand reassuringly. "It's not like that," he explained. "I'm going with my friend Luna. We're going as friends, but I promised I'd take her."

Alek relaxed. He smiled broadly. "For a second there I thought I had some serious competition," he said.

Micah smiled, but his heart skipped a beat at Alek's words. His mind instantly went to Neville and his eyes did the same. He looked over towards the table where the Gryffindor's sat and found Neville. He was laughing at a joke that Seamus had just told. He looked happy and that made Micah happy.

Alek squeezed Micah's hand, drawing the Ravenclaw's attention back to him. "I think it's amazing that you're the kind of guy who keeps his promises. Just promise me you'll save me a dance at the ball."

Micah smiled back at Alek. "I promise."

Micah and Avery sat in the Ravenclaw common room. It was the night of the Yule Ball and they both were waiting for Luna. "Excited for the ball," Micah asked Avery.

Avery adjusted one of the sleeves of his grey dress robe. "I suppose," Avery said slowly. "I don't really like dancing, but Luna insisted that I go."

Micah laughed. "Luna can be very persuasive when she wants to be."

"Thank you, Micah." Luna walked down the steps that lead from the girl's dorms to the common room. "You both look great."

Micah and Avery stood to greet Luna. Micah wore black dress robes with a cornflower blue tie, shiny black shoes, and silver cufflinks in the shape of music notes. Avery wore light grey dress robes with a skinny purple tie and a pair of darker grey shoes. His cufflinks were shaped like birds.

Avery adjusted his tie. "Thanks," his lips formed into a thin smile.

Micah moved forward and bowed. "You look amazing, Miss Lovegood."

Luna giggled and curtseyed. She wore a light pink dress and a pair of sparkly silver high heels. Her hair fell in neat curls down her back. A violet colored shawl adorned her shoulders. Her outfit was completed by her radish earrings. "Thank you, Mister Quinn.:

"However, I think your outfit is missing something." Micah said slyly.

"Really?" Luna looked herself over. "Whatever do you mean?"

Micah pulled his wand from out of his robes and pointed it at Luna's wrist. "Something flowery." Sparks flew from Micah's wand and landed on Luna's wrist.

A purple ribbon wrapped itself around Luna's wrist, and then a pink carnation bloomed on top of the ribbon.

Luna smiled at the corsage. "It's beautiful, Micah." The blonde Ravenclaw kissed Micah on the cheek before taking his hand and pulling him over to Avery. "Shall we go?"

Micah and Avery nodded.

Luna grabbed Avery's hand. "I hope you don't mind, Micah, but I'm feeling terribly selfish. I'd like to have two dates this evening."

Avery met Micah's eyes and blushed.

"I don't mind at all, Luna." Micah smiled. "Let's go show everyone how Ravenclaws party."

Luna nodded. With one hand in Micah's and the other in Avery's, she pulled the two out of the Ravenclaw common room and down to the Yule Ball.

By the time the Ravenclaw trio reached the ball it was in full swing. The Triwizard champions had already finished their opening dance and now everyone was on the dance floor. The decorations were beautiful and made the Great Hall look like a winter wonderland.

Luna turned to Micah and smiled. "I'm going to take Avery out and get his feet wet on the dance floor. Save your first dance for me, okay?"

Micah smiled. "I'll wait for you two right over here," he assured her.

"We'll see you in a bit!" Luna took Avery's hand and dragged him onto the dance floor.

Avery looked back at Micah pleadingly.

Micah shrugged in a way that said even he was powerless against the whims of Luna Lovegood.

"Having fun?" A deep voice asked from behind Micah.

Micah turned to see Alek towering over him. "I'm having a _ball_," he answered.

"Very punny," Alek said with a laugh. "You look very good this evening, Mister Quinn." He said before bowing.

"Thank you, Mister Balakov." Micah bowed as well. "You look very handsome yourself," Micah looked Alek up and down.

Alek wore the same red dress robes as the other Durmstrang students. The color of the robes went well with his skin tone. He completed the outfit with a brown belt that matched the brown lacing of his robes and the brown boots he wore with them.

Alek smiled. He extended his hand to Micah. "May I have this dance?"

"Sorry. I promised my first dance to Luna, and she's still on the dance floor with Avery, her other date." Micah gestured over to the dance floor where Luna was waving her hands over her head while Avery danced nervously next to her.

"Well then, I suppose I'll just have to wait until after the Ball so I can have you to myself," Micah said slyly.

Micah gave Alek an admonishing look.

Alek smiled. "Not like that," he explained. "I have a surprise planned. Do you think you could sneak away an hour before the dance is over?"

Micah nodded. "That shouldn't be a problem," he answered.

Suddenly the band stopped playing music. All eyes turned towards the stage, where the band was being pushed off by a group of attractive females.

Micah nudged Alek. "Aren't those girls from Beauxbatons?"

"You're right," Alek replied. "I wonder what they're doing up there."

As if in answer, one of the girls took center stage. "Attention, attention everyone," she spoke with a heavy French accent. "Vee are the choir from Beauxbatons, the Sirens, and vee vould like to perform a song for you all dis evening."

"Quinn," Jessica Smith appeared behind Micah.

"Good evening, Jessica," Micah turned to the Hogwarts choir lead soloist. "Are you enjoying the ball?"

Jessica ran a hand through her straight black hair. "I was, until the Sirens stepped on stage." Jessica gestured to the girl who had taken center stage. "That's Cecile Gravois, the captain and lead soloist of the Sirens. I don't think I have to tell either of you that they're trying to win points by performing tonight." Jessica raised an eyebrow at Micah and Alek. Micah had informed Jessica that Alek knew of the Tri Choral competition.

Micah shrugged. "Of course, but we both expected that they'd perform eventually. That's the whole point of the competition."

Alek nodded in agreement.

Jessica sighed. "Still, this isn't good for either of our choirs. Think about it, with Durmstrang here the number of male students in the castle has increased significantly, which means that the Sirens have more people here in their target audience. Not only that, but the Beauxbatons students will be cheering for the Sirens especially hard, because they're from the same school." Jessica placed her hands on her hips. "This means trouble."

'How do you know that men are the Sirens' 'target audience'?" Micah inquired.

Jessica looked around to make sure that no one was in earshot. "I did some snooping and I found out that Cecile is half Veela. I have no doubt that their performance will play off of that to try and get all the boys in the Great Hall to go crazy for them."

Micah turned and examined Cecile. She was tall, almost as tall as Alek. She wore a pale blue dress with a slit up the side that showed off her long legs. Her blonde hair was tied into an intricate braid and rested on her back. Micah swallowed nervously as he came to the conclusion that Cecile would have no problem enticing any male who was attracted to women. While Micah was sizing up the competition, the rest of the Sirens took their positions behind Cecile.

"And now without further ado, allow us to perform for you," Cecile smiled.

Micah looked around and saw that her charm was already starting to have an affect on the guys around him. The girls looked furious as their dates openly eyed Cecile.

Cecile swayed in place, moving her hips seductively while singing some opening "oh's".

"_Last Christmas I gave you my heart,  
>But the very next day you gave it away.<br>This year to save me from tears  
>I'll give it to someone special."<em>

Cecile sang in a beautiful soprano. The beat was fast and the Sirens behind Cecile swayed and twirled in rhythm. Cecile made her way around the stage, making flirtatious gestures all the while. Once she reached the end of the stage, she twirled and began walking in the opposite direction.

"_Once bitten and twice shy.  
>I keep my distance, but you still catch my eye.<br>Tell me baby do you recognize me?  
>Well it's been a year it doesn't surprise me."<em>

Cecile shrugged and pouted at the last line, which triggered catcalls from the audience. Many girls in the audience still looked angry, but even they couldn't deny that the Sirens were good.

"_Happy Christmas.  
>I wrapped it up and sent it<br>With a note saying 'I love you' I meant it.  
>Now I know what a fool I've been,<br>But if you kissed me now I know you'd fool me again"_

Cecile made her way to the center of the stage and blew a kiss to the audience. Jessica looked like she wanted to rip her own hair out. Micah patted his lead soloist's back consolingly.

"_A face on a lover with a fire in his heart,  
>A man under cover, but<br>You tore me apart._

_Ooooh,  
>Now I've found a real love you'll never fool me again."<em>

Cecile batted her eyes, then, her movements became faster. She no longer moved in the slow and seductive manner she had towards the beginning of the song. Now her dance moves were fast and powerful. She sashayed forward, snapping her fingers to the beat. The other Sirens took this as a sign and leapt into the audience, each of them grabbing a boy and dancing around wildly. The audience erupted into applause as the entire room began dancing to the Sirens' performance.

"_Last Christmas I gave you my heart,  
>But the very next day you gave it away.<br>This year to save me from tears  
>I'll give it to someone.<br>I'll give it to someone special."_

Cecile was now the only one on stage. She closed her eyes and swayed seductively. Her voice was sultry as she finished the song. Once she sang the final note, she curtseyed, and the audience erupted into cheers and applause.

"I need something to drink," Jessica groaned and walked away.

"Don't stress out to much, Miss Smith!" Micah called after her.

Alek shook his head and chuckled. He turned to Micah to say something, but was interrupted when Luna and Avery danced over.

"Sorry, I need to borrow my date for a while." Luna said to Alek cheerfully. "Here, keep Avery busy while I dance with Micah. I'll come pick him up in a bit." Without saying another word, Luna deposited Avery, grabbed Micah, and dragged him off onto the dance floor.

"I'll come find you at eleven," Micah called over his shoulder as Luna pulled him away.

"I'll be waiting," he called back.

Once Micah and Luna were out of view, Alek looked over at Avery and nodded in greeting.

Avery smiled tightly before turning his attention to the decorations.

The rest of the night was a blur of dancing and laughing. Micah, Luna, and Avery danced together for the remainder of the night after Micah and Luna finished their first dance. At one point, Alek had managed to pull Micah away for a dance. Even Cedric looked like he was enjoying himself as he danced with Cho.

At eleven, Micah excused himself and left Luna and Avery. The Ravenclaw fourth year left the Great Hall and into the Entrance Hall where Alek had said they would meet.

When Micah got to the Entrance Hall, Alek stood expectantly in the center.

"I've been waiting for you, Mister Quinn," Alek smiled up at Micah as he made his way down the stairs.

Micah smiled back as he made his way down the stairs and over to Alek. "Hi," he reached out and took Alek's hand.

Alek looked down at their intertwined hands. "I have a surprise for you," he said, encouraged by Micah's show of affection. Alek lead Micah outside and walked him over to the Great Lake.

"What's the surprise?" Micah asked excitedly after they had been walking for a few minutes.

"You're not very patient, are you?" Alek smirked. "It's right over here near the lake. Look."

Micah looked up and saw large wooden carriage by the lake. The carriage's seat was covered in plush looking red fabric. "It's brilliant," Micah breathed.

Alek looked down at Micah. "I figured its lovely weather for a sleigh ride together with you."

Micah shook his head and laughed. He ran over to the carriage and leapt up into the seat. "Come on, hurry up!"

Alek chuckled. He fastened his pace and made it over to the carriage. "I'm glad you're excited," he said happily.

Micah bit his lip and turned away. "You can't tell anyone that I freaked out over a carriage ride, okay?"

Alek laughed. "Deal."

Micah looked down at the carriage and noticed that there were no horses attached to the carriage. "How is this carriage going to move without anything pulling it?" He asked.

"It's enchanted," Alek explained. "I'm no good at charms like that," he admitted, "so I got some of the other Skylarks to help out."

Micah smiled. "The Locomotor charm," Micah nodded. "It's pretty advanced. I learned it earlier this year."

"I love it when you talk about charms," Alek took Micah's hand in his. "Let's get this date started, shall we?" Alek pulled out his wand and waved it in the air. "_Piertotum Locomotor" _energy pulsed from his wand and fell over the carriage like falling snow. The sleigh lurched forward and began to drive itself around the Great Lake.

"This is amazing," Micah looked over at Alek and smiled. He shivered slightly as snow began to fall from the sky.

Alek moved closer to Micah and hesitantly put his arm around his shoulder.

Micah closed his eyes and placed his head on Alek's shoulder. "Jessica is going to kill me if I don't start earning points for the Frog Choir," he said thinking back to the Sirens' performance earlier.

Alek gently squeezed Micah's shoulder. "So why don't we do a little singing now?"

Micah looked up at and met Alek's eyes. "I know just the song," Micah smiled and began to sing in his beautiful tenor.

"_Just hear those sleigh bells jingling, ring-ting-tingling, too.  
>Come on, it's lovely weather for a sleigh ride together with you.<br>Outside the snow is falling and friends are calling, 'Yoo-hoo!'  
>Come on, it's lovely weather for a sleigh ride together with you."<em>

Alek smiled broadly and picked up the next verse in his rich baritone.

"_Our cheeks are nice and rosy and comfy-cozy are we.  
>We're snuggled up together like two birds of a feather would be.<br>Let's take that road before us and sing a chorus or two.  
>Come on, it's lovely weather for a sleigh ride together with you."<em>

Alek put his arm around Micah and pulled him close. Micah laughed and took Alek's hand. The two began to sing together, their two voices blending together and created a unique harmony.

"_Our cheeks are nice and rosy and comfy-cozy are we.  
>We're snuggled up together like two birds of a feather would be.<br>Let's take that road before us and sing a chorus or two.  
>Come on, it's lovely weather for a sleigh ride together with you."<em>

By the time the two finished singing, there carriage had finished its trip around the Great Lake.

"That was so much fun," Micah laughed. "Thanks for the great time."

Alek smiled back at Micah. "It was no problem at all," he replied.

The bell tower chimed, signaling midnight. Micah and Alek sat alone as the snow fell around them. The two sat closely together as they looked up at the beautiful lights of the castle.

"Merry Christmas, Alek Balakov." Micah stared deeply into Alek's eyes.

Alek's eyes smoldered as looked back at Micah. "Merry Christmas, Micah Quinn." Alek looked up and swallowed hard.

"What is it?" Micah followed Alek's gaze and saw a green plant floating magically above them.

Alek smiled nervously. "Mistletoe," he watched Micah's face for a sign to continue.

Micah smiled and shook his head. "Just kiss me alrea—"

Alek grabbed Micah's face and pulled him into a deep kiss. Micah closed his eyes and grabbed the front of Alek's robes. The two broke apart and looked at each other. They both breathed heavily as they looked into each other's eyes passionately.

Micah smiled and grabbed Alek's hand. "Best Christmas ever." Micah grabbed the front of Alek's robes and pulled him towards him. Their lips found each other and the two continued to kiss while the chime of bells echoed throughout the grounds.


	4. Shiver

Micah and Alek walked down the grassy slops leading from the castle to the Great Lake. The two boys held hands as they weaved through the growing crowd of students walking in the same direction. "Where're your friends at," Alek asked.

"I'm meeting them down by the lake," Micah replied. Sunlight reflected off the lake, causing Micah to squint his eyes. "I suppose we won't be watching the second task together." He averted his eyes from the lake and looked over at Alek. The taller wizard wore a red vest over a brown sweater and a pair of tan slacks. Micah didn't know much about fashion, that was Avery's specialty, but even he could tell that red was Alek's color.

Alek looked down at Micah wistfully. "It wouldn't go over very well if I stood with the Hogwarts cheering section. If I didn't support Viktor, my brother would be furious," he laughed at the last part of his sentence as if his brother's anger amused him. "Your school has two champions though. I guess your cheering section will be divided."

Micah nodded. "I hadn't thought about it. I'll be cheering for Cedric of course. I know most of the school is on his side." The two stopped walking when they reached the shore of the lake. "Harry Potter has the support of Gryffindor house though."

Alek raised an eyebrow. "Are you not a fan of Harry Potter? I've heard a lot of mixed opinions about him."

Micah released Alek's hand and shrugged. "I don't really know him. I suppose his friends have reason to like him, but everyone else has to form their own opinions of him. He's a bit of a trouble maker though." Micah turned when he heard his name called from behind him. Luna, Avery, and Neville sat in a small rowboat that floated in the shallows of the lake.

"Micah, the rowboats will take us to the stands in the middle of the lake," Luna shouted above the din of the crowd. "Hello, Alek," she said as an after thought as she waved to the two boys.

Micah turned back to Alek and smiled. "I guess I better go." Micah looked over his shoulder and saw that Neville wasn't watching him. He turned quickly to Alek and stood on his toes to kiss the taller boy on the lips. "By the way," Micah whispered into Alek's ear. "You look good in red." Without saying another word, Micah turned and ran over his friends in their rowboat.

"Hey, mate!" Neville turned to Micah as the Ravenclaw lowered himself into the boat. The Gryffindor patted Micah on the shoulder and smiled warmly. "How've you been? I haven't seen much of you since we got back from Christmas holiday."

Micah swallowed hard. He hadn't been this close to the former object of his affections since December. He inhaled and was instantly greeted by Neville's usual scent of soap and mulch. "I've been busy with choir activities. You look well."

"Thanks, mate." Neville smiled self-consciously. His black coat was open over a blue and grey-stripped sweater with a zipper. The inside of his coat was lined with blue plaid that matched his navy blue scarf nicely. His brown hair had grown even longer since the start of the year and now curled at the ends. "I've been spending a lot of time in the greenhouse, taking care of this wicked flower," Neville sounded excited as he always did when he spoke about plants. "You should come see it sometime."

Micah nodded in response. Suddenly the rowboat began to move across the lake. Micah's group was surrounded on all sides by other enchanted rowboats transporting spectators to the stands in the center of the lake.

Luna skimmed her hand over the cool water of the lake. "I hope Cedric is prepared for today's task." She pulled her hand back into the boat and wiped it on her purple and pink polka-dotted pants.

"He seemed to figure out the clue relatively easily," Micah replied. "He shouldn't be any less prepared than the other champions." The boat reached the platform set aside for Hogwarts students and docked next to a ladder. Neville climbed the ladder and reached down to help Luna up.

"Thank you very much, Neville." Luna took Neville's hand and allowed him to lift her onto the platform.

"No problem, Luna." Neville smiled and moved a strand of hair from his eyes. He looked over and saw Micah climbing the ladder. "I've got you, mate." He reached down and grabbed Micah with his strong hands and pulled the smaller boy onto the platform.

"I could have gotten up here by myself," Micah said with a slight pout of his lower lips. He smoothed his grey jeans and adjusted his charcoal colored coat, the buttons of which were as black as coal. "I didn't need help."

Neville shook his head and laughed. "I've been saying that to you since first year, but that's never seemed to stop you. I can't count the amount of times you've helped me find Trevor." The taller boy shrugged his shoulder and looked out over the lake. "You're one of my best friends, mate."

Micah turned his head to hide the blush that had crept to his cheeks. "Let's not forget the time I cheered you up after your Gran sent you that Howler," Micah mumbled.

The sound of footsteps on the dock made Micah turn his head. Avery had climbed up the ladder and now stood next to Luna. He took special care to avoid Micah's gaze as he adjusted his silver glasses. "I hope it doesn't rain. My jacket isn't water proof." Avery pulled up the collar of his black leather jacket.

Micah started to make some comment on the weather, but was interrupted as more spectators began to crowd the platform. In a matter of minutes he found himself pushed up against Neville. Luna was to Micah's left and Avery was to her left. The second soloist adjusted the collar of his blue and white-stripped turtleneck while simultaneously attempting to ignore the proximity between himself and Neville.

"Well this is cozy," Luna said dreamily. The blonde was holding both Micah and Avery's hands as they waited for the start of the Triwizard Tournament's second task.

Neville laughed. "Maybe later we can all cuddle up in front of a fire with some butter beer." The Gryffindor put his arm over Micah's shoulder, causing the shorter boy to tense up slightly before relaxing and enjoying the warmth.

The second task began and ended and sometime in between that, two estranged friends became close once again.

Micah, Luna, Avery, and Neville made their way up the grassy slopes on their way from the Great Lake to the castle. "I'm so happy for Cedric," Luna skipped beside Micah as the group moved through the crowd of spectators.

"Harry did great too," Neville added. "After today's task both of our champions are tied for first place."

The group made their way into the Viaduct Courtyard. The sound of a familiar voice caused Micah to stop and turn. "Quinn, I've been looking for you," Jessica Smith stomped over to Micah and poked his chest with a manicured nail.

Micah's lips formed an involuntary smirk. "Miss Smith, to what do I owe the pleasure?" He looked up into Jessica's blue eyes and met her gaze.

"It's show time." Jessica smiled as Micah's usual confidence faltered. "What's wrong, Quinn? Nervous?"

Micah pursed his lips and shook his head, causing his black curls to shake. "I'm not sure I follow your meaning," he said in an attempt to regain his composure. He knew it was never a good idea to show signs of weakness around Jessica Smith.

Jessica moved a strand of her straight black hair from in front of her face. "I want you to sing the song you've been practicing, now." She looked around the courtyard. "There are enough members of the Frog Choir here. They'll back you up once you get started."

"Why aren't you singing one of the songs in your repertoire? You are the lead soloist after all." Micah surreptitiously looked around the courtyard. This did not go unnoticed by Jessica.

"Looking for your boyfriend? I'm sure he'll be here soon," Jessica said, enjoying the rare opportunity to tease her second in command. "In fact, most of the school will be here soon, as they'll have to pass through this courtyard to get back inside the castle. I figured it's the perfect time to earn some points," Jessica paused and pulled the enchanted silver pocket watch from her cleavage. "The reason I'm having you sing is so that I'll have a chance to observe how points are earned in relation to the performance."

Micah bit his bottom lip. "I suppose your reasoning is sound, but do I really have to sing _that_ song?" He looked past Jessica and saw that Alek was now entering the courtyard with a group of his fellow Skylarks. "

Jessica smiled mischievously. "Stop worrying so much, Quinn. I'm sure he won't get too excited...unless you want him to," she added with a wink. "Here, give me that coat. You can't move around wearing that." She removed Micah's coat, leaving him in his white and blue-stripped turtleneck. She threw the coat to Avery. The tall blonde caught the coat reluctantly. Before Micah could protest, Jessica turned the boy around and pushed him into the center of the courtyard.

Micah stumbled forward and after steadying himself, turned to face his friends. Micah found Alek in the crowd and saw that he was already watching him. The Ravenclaw sighed before opening his mouth and singing in his clear tenor voice.

_Wouldn't it be nice if we were older?_  
><em>Then we wouldn't have to wait so long.<em>  
><em>And wouldn't it be nice to live together<em>  
><em>In the kind of world where we belong?<em>

All eyes in the courtyard turned towards Micah as his voice filled the air. The soloist smiled and shrugged his shoulders in an exaggerated manner, causing Neville and Luna to break out in laughter.

_You know its gonna make it that much better_  
><em>When we can say goodnight and stay together.<em>

The members of the Frog Choir sprinkled among the crowd began to sing backup, adding their spirited voices to that of Micah's. That was their true talent, joining their voices in a way that allowed them all stood out.

_Wouldn't it be nice if we could wake up_  
><em>In the morning when the day is new?<em>  
><em>And after having spent the day together<em>  
><em>Hold each other close the whole night through.<em>

Micah ran over to Luna and took her hand. After dancing her around for a bit, he spun her into Neville's arms. The crowd loved this and began to cheer, which prompted other members of the Frog Choir to partner up and swing dance around the courtyard.

_The happy times together we've been spending_  
><em>I wish that every kiss was never ending<em>  
><em>Wouldn't it be nice?<em>

Jessica had moved to a shaded area and leaned against one of the courtyard's stone pillars. She observed the performance and the crowd from her concealed spot. Every few seconds she would look down at the silver pocket watch in her hand, then back up at the crowd, gaging their excitement.

_Maybe if we think and wish and hope and pray it might _  
><em>come true<em>.  
><em>Baby, then there wouldn't be a single thing we couldn't <em>  
><em>do.<em>  
><em>We could be married and then we'd be happy,<em>  
><em>Wouldn't it be nice?<em>

Micah walked with his hands behind his back, taking long deliberate strides. Once he reached the center of the courtyard, he turned on one heel and faced the crowd. The rest of the Frog Choir sang more quietly, so that their voices did not overpower Micah's voice, which had dropped to a more subdued volume.

Micah took a small step forward and looked up into the crowd. His light brown eyes looked like honey in the faint sunlight. It seemed as if he was simply looking into the crowd, but his eyes stared directly into Alek's as he sang the next lyrics.

_You know it seems the more we talk about it_  
><em>It only makes it worse to live without it<em>  
><em>But let's talk about it.<em>

Micah held the last note, lingering over it for emphasis. Alek held his gaze and swallowed hard. Jessica noticed the subtle interaction, looked down at the pocket watch in her hand, and smiled.

Micah finally broke off the final note. He then shrugged his shoulders and turned away from Alek.

_Wouldn't it be nice?_

And that was it. Micah strolled off, making for the main entrance, but turning at the last moment and weaved between shaded pillars until he was next to Jessica. No one in the crowed seemed to notice his detour as the rest of the Frog Choir continued to do runs long after Micah finished his solo.

"Was my performance up to snuff, Miss Smith?" Micah leaned against the pillar adjacent to Jessica and smirked. He ran a hand through his black curls in the way that always annoyed the lead soloist.

One of Jessica's arched eyebrows twitched slightly. "Your performance was passable," she admitted. "Our point meter jumped quite a bit during that little moment between you and your boyfriend," she added slyly.

Micah rolled his eyes dismissively. He had no doubt that Alex had spurred a boost in points. Thinking back to the performance Alek had done on the day of their first date, Micah realized that the Skylark's had probably earned a similar emotion fueled boost. The mention of Alek caused Micah to seek him out in the crowd. When his eyes landed on the Skylark's second soloist, he found that he was talking to Neville. The two never went well together in Micah's mind, but they went together even worse in person.

"It's been nice talking to you, Miss Smith, but I've got to go." Micah left Jessica and strode over to his friends. "Alek," Micah said pointedly.

Alek stopped mid sentence and turned to Micah. "Your performance, mostly." He raised his eyebrows at Micah before continuing. "And today's task, of course."

Neville nodded. "Alek is great. No wonder he's been able to keep you away from me these last few months." Neville's tone wasn't serious, but blanched. "I've heard you two have hit it off. It's great how the Triwizard Tournament creates friendships between students from different schools."

Alek smirked. His hazel eyes shone with amusement. "Micah and I hit it off just fine," he gave Micah a quick wink. "I wouldn't mind hitting it off a bit more with him though."

Micah suppressed a gasp and vaguely wondered what the punishment would be for an underage wizard to apparate to another continent. Luna held back a giggle. Avery bit his bottom lip and pretended not to hear the conversation going on right in front of him. Neville missed Alek's meaning completely.

Alek opened his mouth to make another comment, but was cut off by Micah. "We've got to go," Micah grabbed Alek's wrist and began pulling him away from the group. "Alek needs help with his Charms homework." Micah told the lie, knowing no one would question its validity.

"He's been helping me with Charms since first year," Neville spoke after them. "You're in good hands, Alek."

Alek looked down at his wrist in Micah's hand as the shorter boy lead him away. "I agree," he said more to himself than to Neville. "I'm certainly in good hands."

"What were you doing out there?" Micah dragged Alek to an abandoned corridor halfway between the entrance hall and the dungeons.

Alek leaned against cool stone wall and shrugged. "You mean other than watching your performance?" He raised his eyebrow. "That song was...very, illuminating. What was it you were singing about? Something about talking about _it_ makes it worse to live without it," Alek leaned down and put his lips to Micah's ear. "Maybe we should talk about it."

Heat rushed to Micah's cheeks. "It's just a song," he said, taking a step back. "I mean, what's there to talk about?"

Alek pursed his lips. "You're right, you're right." He ran his hand over his sandy brown hair and sighed. He was use to these conversations. Alek would push too far, Micah would become flustered, and then Alek would remember their two-year age difference. "I didn't mean anything by it...What is it you were talking about?"

Micah relaxed. His usual composure returned. "It's fine."

Alek nodded, but remained silent. He was now occupying himself by watching a spider spin a web in the corner of the corridor.

Micah put his hand on Alek's arm. "Alek, I'm serious. It's fine," he sighed. "I guess sometimes I just get a bit...flustered by your forwardness."

Alek's lips formed into a thin smile. "It's understandable. I suppose there's a bit of hormonal changes between the age of fourteen and sixteen. Sometimes I forget," Alek hesitated, then reached out and touched Micah's cheek. "I would never pressure you into doing anything you weren't comfortable with. Ever."

Micah nodded. "Well this conversation didn't go the way I wanted," he mumbled.

Alek raised an eyebrow. "You asked me what I was doing out there. You meant after your performance," he paused in thought. "You're talking about when I was with your friends."

Micah bit his bottom lip. "Yes," he said quietly. He looked into Alek's eyes. The taller boy didn't look hurt, but confused.

"I've talked to your friends before," Alek continued. "Luna, Cedric, Jessica, and Avery even though he refuses to say more than a sentence or two whenever I'm around."

Now it was Micah's turn to look confused. Did Avery really act different when Alek was around? Why? Was there something about Avery that Micah didn't know? He began to ask, but Alek continued talking.

"The only friend of yours I haven't had the chance to speak to is Neville." Micah did not like the direction the conversation was going in, be he remained silent while Alek continued. "Neville is your best friend, or so I gathered from the brief conversation we had earlier. Why have we never met?"

What could Micah say? He couldn't exactly tell Alek that up until recently he had harbored a secret crush for the charming Gryffindor he called his best friend. That would make his behavior seem even worse. Neville was in the past. He was with Alek now. So why didn't he want the two around each other? Why would he only kiss Alek when Neville wasn't looking?

The silence answered Alek's question. "Did you two use to date?" He asked tentatively. Now he looked hurt. Not by the idea of some past romance, but by the implications of Micah's omission.

"No," Micah answered hurriedly. "We're just friends, we always have been." He looked away and decided that honesty was the best policy. "I had a bit of a crush on him though...maybe a bit more than a crush. I'm not really sure when it started, but I noticed it last year." He looked into Alek's eyes and silently begged him to understand.

Alek nodded. "A crush...well, we all have those." He moved away from Micah. "Do you want me to stay away from Neville?"

Micah was taken aback by the offer. In all honesty, Micah would prefer it. Something about Neville and Alek sharing the same space made him nervous. He spoke before he could think better of it. "No," his answered surprised himself more than it did Alek.

Alek smiled. "Good. Any friend of yours is a friend of mine." He reached out his hand. Micah took it without hesitation. "We still have a few hours of daylight. What do you want to do?"

They could have sat out by the Great Lake or played chess in the library, but as the events of the day swarmed in Micah's mind there was only one thing he wanted to do. "Let's go find a quiet place and take a nap."


	5. Sophomore Slump or Comeback of the Year

The Great Hall was sprinkled with students shoving down breakfast before class. Micah and Avery sat together at the Ravenclaw table.

"Why does Potions have to be so early?" Avery whined before putting a spoonful of grapefruit in his mouth. "The dungeon is so cold in the morning."

Micah put down his copy of the Daily Prophet. "It's always cold in the dungeons. At least we get it over with early." His black corkscrew hair framed his face limply. "And we get to Snape before the Gryffindors, which means he'll be in a good mood…well, good for Snape." He took a sip of coffee and went back to reading the paper.

"Morning," Luna said in greeting as she skipped over to the table. "Is Alek not eating with us this morning?" Luna asked as she sat between Micah and Avery.

Micah shook his head. "His brother, Arnost, called for a Skylark meeting," he said with a shrug. "I think that involves them jogging around the lake while Arnost drills them on their harmonies."

"Quinn!" Jessica walked swiftly over to Micah. "We need to talk," she said breathlessly. She looked as flustered as she had been the past few weeks, but her hair was combed, which was a nice change.

"Miss Smith, you're looking better," Micah said before taking another swig of his coffee. "I'll find you after breakfast. We can talk lat –"

"Now," Jessica grabbed Micah by the back of his cloak and dragged him away from the table. Micah didn't struggle, but Jessica kept her grip on him as she pulled him out of the Great Hall and into the entrance hall.

"You really have to stop letting the Skylarks and the Sirens get to you." Micah pulled the hood of his cloak from out of Jessica's grip. "It's very unbecoming of you," he said as he smoothed out his robes.

Jessica sighed. "This whole tournament has been so stressful. I love a challenge, but I never thought it be so hard to get the choir motivated." Jessica pulled a compact mirror from her school bag and examined herself. "You're right though. I look like death."

Micah nodded. "Well admittance is the first step to rehabilitation." He smiled up at the lead soloist. "So, what was so urgent that you pulled me away from my coffee?"

Jessica's lips formed into a thin smile. "It's time to show those other choirs what home field advantage is all about."

…

Micah crept through the halls. He passed by a grandfather clock which read eleven-fifty; past curfew, but only a few minutes before the scheduled meet up time. "I thought the common room would never empty out," Micah muttered as he effortlessly skipped over a missing step in the moving staircase and made his way to the entrance hall. From the top of the marble staircase he could see three groups of students huddled in the entrance hall.

"You're almost late, Quinn," Jessica stood with her hands on her hips at the bottom of the steps. She wore a charcoal grey skirt and a white blouse with the sleeves rolled up to her elbows. Her Ravenclaw tie was wrapped loosely around her neck. Behind their leader, the rest of the Frog Choir stood, wearing what Jessica liked to call "Hogwarts casual chic." The girls wore outfits identical to Jessica's, with the exception of their ties which all represented their house. The boys wore dressed the same, except for their charcoal grey pants.

"Sneaking out past curfew isn't as easy as you made it seem," Micah responded as he made his way down the steps. "If Filch catches us, we'll get an earful from Professor Flitwick. And we both know how bad he is at being a disciplinarian. It'll be painful for all parties involved."

Jessica rolled her eyes and grabbed Micah by his arm. "Enough snark, Quinn. It's show time." Jessica dragged Micah to a group of four who stood in the center of the entrance hall. Upon further inspection, one could see that there were three groups in attendance; the Frog Choir, the Skylarks, and the Sirens. Jessica dropped Micah's arm. "So, shall we get started?" Jessica asked as she stared down Arnost Balakov and Cecile Gravois

Arnost raised an eyebrow as he sized Jessica up. He wore a pair of brown slacks and thin red thermal shirt. "There is no time like the present," he said in a thick Bulgarian accent.

Behind Arnost, Alek flashed Micah a quick smile and shrugged. He wore the same outfit as his brother. From this close, Micah could see that Alek was actually taller than his older brother by about five inches. Arnost's muscle and stage presence probably had made him appear taller during their first performance.

"But zee door to zee Great Hall is locked," Cecile chimed in. She wore a powder blue pencil skirt and a long sleeved white blouse. Around her neck she wore a blue ribbon which was tied into a bow. "We cannot perform out in zee hall. Everyone in zee castle vill hear us."

A girl with curly dark brown hair stood behind Cecile. Her outfit was identical to Cecile's, but based off her posture she was not as confident as the tall soprano. Her skin, which was a tone darker than most of the Beauxbutons girls, was covered in freckles. Behind the circular lenses of her glasses was a pair of stunning green eyes. Micah couldn't help notice how beautiful her eyes were. When the girl felt Micah's gaze on her, she blushed and looked away.

Cecile noticed the nonverbal exchange. "This is my little second soloist, Garnet Tremblay," Cecile gestured to Garnet, who curtsied in response.

"What are we going to do about the door?" Arnost interrupted impatiently. He crossed his arms over his broad chest.

Jessica snapped her fingers. "Quinn, handle the door," Jessica commanded. Her tone was a telltale sign that she was back to normal.

"Right away, Miss Smith." Micah stepped forward and pulled his wand from his pocket. "Alohomora." Silver wisps of light flew from Micah's wand and landed on various spots of the wooden door which lead to the Great Hall. The sound of unlocking assured the group that the spell had been successful; the door opening with a low groan confirmed it.

"Impressive," Cecile said with a little clap of her hands. She sashayed past the group and through the double doors of the Great Hall with Felecia at her heels.

The rest of the singers moved quickly into the Great Hall. Once everyone was inside, Alek and Arnost pushed the large doors shut.

Jessica walked to the front of the Great Hall. "Quinn, quiet things up for us," she said over her shoulder. Arnost and Cecile followed Jessica, leaving Alek and Garnet with Micah.

Micah saluted before pulling out his wand and pointing it at the door. "Muffliato," he whispered. A grey film flowed from Micah's wand and settled over the door and surrounding walls. After a moment, the film disappeared and was replaced with a faint buzzing sound. "No one should be able to hear us now." Micah turned and walked toward the front of the Great Hall.

Alek fell in step behind Micah "Where'd you learn that charm?" Alek whispered. He leaned down so that only Micah could here him.

"It was written in an old Potions text book I found," Micah answered without looking up. "Are you ready for this?"

Alek shrugged. "We're just having a little competition. It should be fun." Alek straightened up when they reached the front of the Great Hall. The three choir leads were already standing on the raised platform that overlooked the room.

The three second soloists took their spots behind their leads. The other members of the gathers choirs stood around nervously. All eyes were Jessica, Arnost, and Cecile.

"Let's get started," Arnost said. He reached into the pocket and pulled out a bronze pocket watch. The Durmstrang crest was engraved on the cover of the watch.

"You took the words right out of my mouth." Jessica pulled her pocket watch from out of her cleavage. The silver watch gleamed in the candle light.

Cecile pulled a gold pocket watch from a pocket in her skirt. The Beauxbatons crest was engraved on the cover, just as the Hogwarts crest adorned Jessica's and the Durmstrang crest adorned Arnost's.

The three lead soloists held up their watches and simultaneously pressed their crowns. Sparks flew from each watch and formed Roman numerals ranging from one to three. The number three floated over the Durmstrang watch, two floated over the Beauxbatons watch, and one floated over the Hogwarts watch.

"What do those numbers mean?" Everyone turned to the source of the question with various looks of surprise on their faces. The one who asked the question was Garnet Tremblay and she had just spoken for the first time since the group gathered in the entrance hall. Garnet blushed and looked down at her feet.

Micah jumped in to save Garnet from the unwanted attention. "Those numbers are our rankings in the Tri choral tournament," Micah explained. "Third place," he pointed to the three floating over the Durmstrang watch. "Second place," he gestured to the Beauxbaton watch. "And first place," he nodded to Jessica who represented the Hogwarts choir.

"I thought we agreed not to tell anyone about the rankings until now," Arnost said irritably. He looked over at Jessica, expecting her to confess that she had broken her promise.

Jessica did not falter under Arnost's gaze. "I didn't have to," Jessica said with a shrug. "Quinn is just a very clever individual."

Arnost grunted in response while Alek stifled his laughter.

"So zee Frog choir is in first place," Cecile said evenly. "Vee came here tonight to change that," she finished with a little smirk.

Jessica returned Cecile's smile. "You're more than welcome to try." She looked from Cecile to Arnost and back to Cecile. "We've decided to have a sing off," she said aloud. "Though, we haven't decided what song to sing."

"Pick a song," Arnost said with a shrug. "The Skylarks will have no problem keeping up." Several members of the Skylarks visibly cringed at the tone of Arnost's voice. Alex rolled his eyes at his brother's seriousness.

"That goes for the Sirens as well," Cecile said. The Sirens all nodded in approval of their leader's confidence.

Jessica shrugged and gave the other captains one last smirk before turning and walking over to the rest of the Frog choir with Micah close behind. "Let's show them why we're in first place," she whispered. Without saying another word, Jessica turned on her heels and began singing in her powerful soprano.

"_Well you're a real tough cookie with a long history_

_Of breaking little hearts like the one in me"_

Jessica strode forward until she was right in Arnost's face. Arnost was taken aback by her boldness, but he did not back down. On the last line, Jessica winked. She then turned and walked over to the other members of the Frog choir who were contributing harmony to Jessica's vocals.

Micah managed to surreptitiously position himself behind the stunned soloists and their second in commands. He poked Alex on the shoulder, causing the Skylark to turn and face him. Micah smiled before continuing the song in his soulful tenor.

"_That's okay; let's see how you do it._

_Put up your dukes, let's get down to it."_

Micah put his fists up in a mock boxing stance. He then hopped onto the long table behind him and ran down it. Alek shook his head with a laugh before giving chase. Cecile tilted her head, prompting Garnet to chase after the two co-captains. Garnet nodded and ran after Alek and Micah.

Cecile snapped her fingers. The Sirens skipped forward and surrounded the Frog choir. The Beauxbatons choir took over the chorus of the song while performing their signature swaying dance moves.

"_Hit me with your best shot!_

_We don't you hit me with your best shot?"_

Arnost strode over to the Skylarks and shoved a few of them forward. Taking their cue, they too surrounded the Frog choir and added acoustic style accompaniment to the Sirens' singing.

Cecile sashayed over to Jessica and bumped her hip with her own, before continuing the song.

"_Hit me with your best shot!"_

Jessica felt a tap on her shoulder. She turned around to see Arnost standing behind her with his arms crossed and a smug smirk on his face. He winked before taking the next line of the song.

"_Fire away!"_

Cecile and Arnost exchanged a look. The two seemed to come to an understanding. Like clockwork, Cecile and Arnost began circling Jessica. The Hogwarts soloist kept her head high and belted out the next part of the song.

"_You come on with your come on, _

_You don't fight fair."_

Jessica pushed past her competitors. She jumped onto a table then turned and shrugged innocently.

"_But that's okay; see if I care._

_Knock me down; it's all in vain._

_I'll get right back on my feet again."_

The Frog choir tried picking up the chorus again, but was overpowered by the combined efforts of the Skylarks and the Sirens. The Sirens danced rhythmically around the Great Hall, while the Skylarks two-stepped and hummed to the beat.

Alek and Garnet finally caught up to Alek at the end of the long table. Garnet amazed the other co-captains by pushing past Alek and getting right in Micah's face. She opened her mouth and sang the next part of the song in a surprisingly powerful alto.

"_Hit me with your best shot!"_

Micah, not one to be overpowered, retorted with his own soulful tenor.

"_Why don't you hit me with your best shot?"_

Micah and Garnet glared at each other and belted out the next part of the song in unison.

"_Hit me with your best shot!"_

Alek sang out in his rich baritone, beating the other co-captains to the next part of the song.

"_Fire away!"_

Micah and Garnet glared at Alek for interrupting their battle, but the Skylark simply shrugged in response. Alek strode forward with his long legs and got in between Micah and Garnet. He put his arms around their shoulders and led them to the side of the table, where he forced them all to sit down. Alek then turned to Micah and pouted dramatically as he continued singing.

"_Well you're a real tough cookie with a long history_

_Of breaking little hearts like the one in me."_

Alek removed his arms from around his two rivals' shoulders and pushed away from the table. He turned and beckoned Micah forward by wagging two fingers at him. The Frog choir co-captain leapt up from the table and marched right up to Alek. The two stood inches apart while Alek sang.

"_Before I put another notch in my lipstick case,_

_You better make sure to put me in my place."_

Alek leaned down and kissed Micah on the cheek. The Ravenclaw shook his head and jokingly shoved the taller boy away. Micah turned and saw Jessica cornered by Arnost and Cecile, so he danced over and grabbed his captain by the hand. Micah gave Jessica a wink before pulling her away from the other choir captains and dancing over to the rest of the Frog choir. The other captains and co-captains followed suit and took their places in front of their respective choirs. All their voices came together in harmony for the finale.

"_Hit me with your best shot!_

_Why don't you hit me with your best shot?_

_Hit me with your best shot!_

_Fire away!"_

The song ended with various members of the three choirs nose to nose. Alek stood diagonally from Micah. To Alek's amusement, Garnet had planted herself in front of Micah. Jessica starred down Arnost and Cecile. After a few moments the tension broke and the three choirs stepped away from each other.

Cecile stepped forward. She was slightly out of breath. "So, shall vee check our rankings now?" Cecile looked from Jessica to Arnost.

Jessica and Arnost nodded. The three captains stepped forward and pulled out their pocket watches. Micah, Alek, and Garnet exchanged glances as their captains raised their watches in unison. Sparks flew from the watches and formed Roman numerals. The number one floated over the Durmstrang watch and the number two floated above the Beauxbaton watch.

The Skylarks cheered loudly and slapped each other on the back. Alek gave Micah a sad smile before joining in his choir's celebration. The Sirens clapped for the Skylarks, while simultaneously celebrating their spot in second place.

Micah stepped forward. His curly black hair was stuck to his forehead with sweat. "We tried our best, Miss Smith," he said before putting his hand on Jessica's shoulder.

Jessica ran a hand through her hair and sighed. "Quinn, in a matter of minutes we went from first place to last place. Our best wasn't good enough."


End file.
